Team Yellow's Pokélog
by Tashojiri
Summary: Classic Pokémon fanfiction! Follow the 3-year pokémon journey of Janet Harris and her friends as she struggles to earn the 15 badges needed to enter the Pokémon League. FULL STORY NOW ONLINE!
1. Information

NOTE: This first "chapter" contains some background information about the story. It's not necessary to read, but it should help somewhat to understand the story. If you'd rather not read this, just skip to the prologue to begin the story!__

  
  


_Team Yellow's Pokélog_ is the first _Pokémon_ fanfic I began writing, and to date, the only one I've finished. ^_^; The 200 chapters took me 3 years and 3 months to write - from February 1999 until May 2002. Because I started writing it when I was 13 years old, you can see how the writing style improves as the story goes along. ^_^

TYP can be classed as a "new trainer" fanfic, but with a major difference in that it's not set in Kanto, Johto, Houen, or any other existing _Pokémon_ world. Instead, it's set in the world of _Team Yellow's Tales_, which is a sort-of-fanfic I've been working on since . . . as long as I can remember. ^_^ By sort-of-fanfic, I mean that it's not based on any particular game/anime/whatever, but it uses some of the elements of these in it, particularly the _Super Mario Bros._ series. Before I explain the _Team Yellow's Tales_ universe, or the "yellowverse" as it's come to be known, I have to point out that _Team Yellow's Pokélog_'s world is only _based_ on the TYT world, it's still not the exact same one. The main difference is that, well, pokémon and pokémon training and so on exist in the TYP world! Once I explain the world of _Team Yellow's Tales_ to you, I'll explain which elements of this exist in _Team Yellow's Pokélog_ and which don't. I just feel that explaining the yellowverse first will help me to explain the world of TYP. ^_^

The yellowverse is made up of an almost infinite amount of different species, from all of the different games, anime, cartoons, stories, and so on, around the world. By species I mean things like yoshis from _Super Mario Bros._, nameks from _DragonBall Z_, cabbits from _Tenchi Muyo!_, kitsunegumas from _Hunter X Hunter_, meowths from _Pokémon_, and so on. In the yellowverse, each species lives in much the same way as humans do. They all speak in human tongue (a few have their own native languages, but these are mostly dead languages), go to school, work, and basically everything else which humans do (except stand on two feet and wear clothes!). Each species is its own biological species, so those which in their original games/anime/whatnot which "evolve" or otherwise change, do not. Thus, an azurill, a marill, and an azumarill are all completely different species, despite how much they look alike. Most species like azurills which are very small, grow slightly larger in the yellowverse as a result of their lack of evolution. None of the species have special powers like natus having psychic abilities, but some species do have (limited) abilities such as charmanders being able to breathe fire.

And so, in the yellowverse, although there are such species as squirtles and snorlaxes, there are no such thing as pokémon. That may be a hard concept to grasp, but it will make sense after a while. Take the character Gelby Chu. She's a pikachu, but she's not a pokémon. This is because pikachus in the yellowverse are born pikachus and stay pikachus - Gelby was never a pichu and never will be a raichu. Similarly, pikachus in the yellowverse do not have any electricity, and are not able to be kept in pokéballs (especially since pokéballs themselves don't exist!). Each one of them speaks English. So what does Gelby have in common with Ash's pikachu? Basically, nothing, except her appearance.

As for the world itself . . . the yellowverse is divided up into continents, and each continent basically functions as a country. Within each continent, there are different kingdoms, which are the lands which can be found in different games, anime, etc.. For example, the Mushroom Kingdom from _Super Mario Bros._, Hyrule from _The Legend of Zelda_, and such. However, these lands are not exactly the same as the ones you know and love . . . as although they contain many of the same features, they also contain a lot more, mainly the modern residential and commercial areas. So yes, only a few minutes' drive from Hyrule Castle is, in fact, the Hyrule shopping centre, a set of high-rise flats, and loads more. ^_^

The continent in which most of _Team Yellow's Tales_ is set is called Mildew, and its capital kingdom is the Mushroom Kingdom. It also contains the Hyrule and a number of other kingdoms both existing in games etc. and ones made specifically for TYT such as the Reflexion Kingdom, where the main character Janet Harris lives. Mildew is inhabited mainly by Nintendo species. The South-East area, where both the Mushroom Kingdom and the Reflexion Kingdom, are located, consists of mainly creatures from _Super Mario Bros._, like yoshis, koopa troopers, goombas and bob-ombs. Different areas of Mildew contain different species, and different continents of the yellowverse, such as Aspen or Trefoil, are inhabited by different species yet again.

Now, although species from these various games and so on live in the yellowverse as humans do, this doesn't mean that the games which they're from don't exist either! No, quite the opposite. Video games like _Pokémon_ do exist in _Team Yellow's Tales_, despite there being remoraids speaking English, not using attacks and not evolving. In fact, _Pokémon_ is one of Gelby's favourite games. She doesn't find it strange to have to "train" pikachus which can only say the word "pikachu", which have strange powers and which somehow can transform into raichus. As strange as that may sound, it's not all that weird when you think about it. We watch anime like _DragonBall Z_ where humans fly and can throw energy blasts and so on, don't we? It's really no different to that.

I think that pretty much sums up the yellowverse for you. I don't know whether I've made any sense or not, since it's hard to explain something that only I understand to someone who's probably never heard of _Team Yellow's Tales_ before. ^_^ If you have any questions about the yellowverse, feel free to ask: I'd be happy to answer them.

  
  


So how does all of this work in _Team Yellow's Pokélog_? In TYP the scenario is slightly different. There exist those kinds of "pokémon" mentioned above, but they are only found in a town called Pallet Town (which isn't the same one Ash lives in, it's simply named after it) and are thus called "Pallet pokémon". They also have some features of the "real" pokémon, but these features are very limited. In TYP, Gelby can give people electric shocks, something she cannot do in TYT! I chose to do this to help people grasp the concept of yellowverse species. However, Gelby still does not evolve nor can she be kept in a pokéball.

The main difference between TYP and TYT is that in TYP, pokémon _do_ exist. As well as the "Pallet pokémon", there are the creatively titled "Poké pokémon". ^_^; These are the pokémon you are familiar with: those which speak only their name, which can use attacks, which evolve, and which can be kept in pokéballs. Unlike the rest of the species of the yellowverse, they do not live like humans, but instead like animals, just as they do in the _Pokémon_ games and anime. In TYP, there are pokémon trainers, pokémon gyms, and of course a Pokémon League.

Thus, the world of _Team Yellow's Pokélog_ is somewhat of a combination between the world of _Team Yellow's Tales_ and the world of _Pokémon_. Perhaps I should have chosen a less complicated scenario for my fanfic, but it really isn't all that complicated once you read the story. Although originally I was going to include species from TYT such as koopa troopers and goombas regularly, I decided against it. The only non-typical _Pokémon_ character is Sand-Cloud Pluff the yoshi, whom I had to include as she's part of Team Yellow itself. ^_^ If you ignore the fact that a yoshi travels around on a pokémon journey, _Team Yellow's Pokélog_ really isn't all that different from the _Pokémon_ universe. You can simply imagine Gelby as a pikachu who can speak English and doesn't battle, if you wish. ^_^

Finally, _Team Yellow's Pokélog_ takes place in locations from _Team Yellow's Tales_, not from the _Pokémon_ games or anime. So instead of travelling to Cinibar Island to earn the fire-type badge, Team Yellow must travel to Charcoal City. And speaking of badges . . . the Pokémon League in _Team Yellow's Pokélog_ requires trainers to collect fifteen badges, not eight. The fifteen badges must be of the fifteen pokémon types (TYP is set in the days of _Blue/Red/Yellow_). Rather than allowing the trainer to enter a competition like in the _Pokémon_ anime, the fifteen badges allow the trainer to battle an elite trainer (just one, not four ^_^) for the "master badge" which gives the trainer the status of Pokémon Master.

  
  


The "characters" thing at the beginning of each chapter is there to help you remember the names of the pokémon and such. By the end of the story there are quite a lot of pokémon to keep track of, so I decided to put the "characters" at the start of each chapter so that you can refer to it when they appear. A lot of the time it does state what pokémon the character is, but sometimes it doesn't. So if it just says "Chazz" and you can't remember what Chazz is, just look up the top of the chapter and it'll tell you that it's a charmander. Hmm, I just spent a whole paragraph explaining a fairly simple concept. =P Anyway, the "characters" list also tells you the last names of the main characters, which don't actually appear in the story. So there you go.  
  
A lot of the characters in the story have been submitted by people on request, but unfortunately I can't take any more character submissions (since I've finished writing the whole story!). If you'd like to submit a character to appear in the sequel, _Team Yellow's Masterlog_, just contact me. ^_^


	2. Prologue

Prologue  
  
The day had finally arrived. I was going to become a PokÃ©mon trainer, finally. As soon as I woke up I got out of bed and ran downstairs.  
  
'Bye Ferlox,' I said to my friend Ferlox.  
  
'Good luck Janet,' he replied. 'And good luck to Sand-Cloud and Gelby. And to Luke.'  
  
I smiled and ran as fast as I could to Pallet Town. I went straight to Gelby's house. She was asleep in bed.  
  
'Come on Gelby,' said her older sister, Gelba. 'Janet's here to take you. Today's the day, remember?'  
  
Gelby got out of bed.  
  
'I'm coming,' she yawned.  
  
'Hurry up,' I said. 'Sand-Cloud will be waiting.'  
  
Gelby climbed up and sat on my shoulders. We waved goodbye to Gelba and hurried to the Mushroom Kingdom. We met Sand-Cloud at her house.  
  
'What took you so long?' she asked.  
  
'Gelby was asleep,' I laughed. Sand-Cloud groaned and followed us to the Kairan Kingdom. To get there we had to go through the Whirlpool Kingdom, so we decided to stop by and see if our friend Luke (who was also becoming a trainer) had left yet. We found him walking through the Kingdom, also on his way to Kairan.  
  
'Hi Luke,' I called. He turned around.  
  
'Hey, Janet,' he said.  
  
'I can't believe we're finally becoming trainers,' I said. Luke smiled and we walked together all the way to the Kairan Kingdom. When we got there we found the house of Dr Orien.  
  
'Ah, Luke,' he said. 'And Team Yellow. You're finally here. Come inside.'  
  
We followed him into his house. Inside we saw four other trainers, including Dr Orien's son, Mitch. Mitch used to be Luke's best friend, but I didn't like him at all. And, he didn't like me at all. Basically, we were rivals, even before becoming pokÃ©mon trainers.  
  
'I'm so glad you could make it Janet,' Mitch said sarcastically.  
  
'OK everyone settle down,' said Dr Orien. 'Now I know you're all here to become pokÃ©mon trainers. Before I give you your pokÃ©dex, can you just tell me your names so I can register you as official pokÃ©mon trainers?'  
  
'This is Luke the fluke,' said Mitch, pointing at Luke. 'And this is Janet the, um, er, granite?'  
  
'I can think of plenty of things to rhyme with Mitch,' I said. 'Ditch, witch, pitch, itch, glitch, bi-'  
  
'That's enough Janet,' said Dr Orien. 'You're here to get yourselves registered as pokÃ©mon trainers, not to fight. Of course, you will all be rivals from now on.'  
  
'I know who my number one rival is,' said Mitch, glaring at me.  
  
'Mitch,' warned Dr Orien. 'If you don't be quiet I won't give you your pokÃ©dex.'  
  
That made Mitch shut up. Dr Orien then handed us our pokÃ©dexes and registered our names. He then handed each of us an ID card stating that we were official pokÃ©mon trainers, and our trainer's guides.  
  
'Alright everyone,' said Dr Orien. 'You can all go your separate ways. I don't expect you to follow each other all the time. You are now individual trainers, alright? You can all go now. Mitch, before you go I want to give you something.'  
  
Mitch grinned proudly at us all. He'd told us a thousand times that his father was going to give him a pokÃ©mon before he left.  
  
'Well go on,' said Mitch. 'Have fun catching your first pokÃ©mon.'  
  
He sneered at me as we left the house.  
  
'Hold on Janet,' said Luke. 'Let's wait and see what he gets.'  
  
I nodded. We looked through Mitch's window. We saw Dr Orien handing him a pokÃ©ball.  
  
'Come on,' said Luke. 'Throw it!'  
  
Just at that moment, Mitch threw his pokÃ©ball. A bulbasaur came out. Luke enthusiastically took out his pokÃ©dex.  
  
'Bulbasaur,' it read, 'a plant and poison pokÃ©mon. A strange seed was planted on its back at birth. The seed sprouts and grows with this pokÃ©mon.'  
  
'I like bulbasaurs,' I said. 'I wish I had one.'  
  
'You'll never get any if we don't hurry up,' said Sand-Cloud.  
  
'Yeah yeah,' I said. I started walking away when Mitch came out of the house.  
  
'Hey Janet,' he said. 'You do realise, I'm going to become a pokÃ©mon master. And you'll never be one. And neither will your little friend Luke.'  
  
'We'll see,' said Luke.  
  
'At least we're not so bad that we have to be given our first pokÃ©mon,' I smirked.  
  
'What do you mean your "first pokÃ©mon"?' said Mitch. 'You don't have any yet!'  
  
'I'm giving them time to prepare themselves,' I said.  
  
'Yeah, to prepare themselves for how bad you're going to be,' said Mitch.  
  
'OK, break it up you two,' said Luke. 'I don't know about you, but I'm off to catch some pokÃ©mon. See ya!'  
  
'Bye Luke,' I said. He turned his back and walked away. Before Mitch could say anything, I turned and walked back to the Reflexion Kingdom, where I would start my pokÃ©mon journey.  
  
~Janet~ 


	3. Part One

Part One, Chapter One  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu  
  
We couldn't believe our luck as we walked through the last of the forest. I smiled as I looked more closely at the two buildings I was facing. The larger one had a huge sign labelled "Poké Centre", but it was the smaller building that really caught my attention. The sign read "Poké Mart sale! 50% off all pokéballs and potions!".  
  
'Check it out, Janet!' Sand-Cloud smiled and ran ahead of me. I followed her casually into the Poké Mart.  
  
'Can I help you, girl?' the storekeeper asked. I didn't like his attitude. He acted as if I wasn't meant to be here, as if I wasn't a trainer.  
  
'Yeah, just a few pokéballs, please,' I asked.  
  
'How many would you like?'  
  
'Uh, about five'll do,' I guessed. He handed the pokéballs over.  
  
'Better get some potions, too,' suggested Sand-Cloud. The storekeeper peered down over the counter at the yoshi. He obviously hadn't noticed my short companion.  
  
'Yeah, I'll take five potions, too,' I added. I payed for my purchases and was ready to leave when the storekeeper said,  
  
'You a new trainer?'  
  
I turned to face him, 'yeah, why?'  
  
'How many pokémon ya got?'  
  
I was hoping I wouldn't be asked this question, 'well, none, actually.'  
  
The storekeeper looked at me strangely. He obviously hadn't realised that Gelby was no poké pikachu. She decided to speak up.  
  
'We just started our team,' she smiled. 'Haven't had a chance to catch any yet.'  
  
The storekeeper nodded, realising that Gelby was a Pallet Town pikachu (not the "real" Pallet Town, of course. Gelby's home town was a village in the Reflexion Kingdom which contained a completely different species of pokémon. It had simply been named after Ashton Ketchum's home. The pokémon in Gelby's Pallet Town were gifted with human speech. These pokémon did not evolve, nor were they able to be kept in pokéballs. They were really completely different to other pokémon, except for their appearances).  
  
'If you're looking for a first pokémon around here, don't just go throwing pokéballs at it. You'll have to weaken it first.'  
  
'Thanks for the tip,' I said as I left the shop.  
  
We walked in silence through the small town. Then, Sand-Cloud suddenly noticed a charmander.  
  
'Look, Janet!' she pointed. I nodded.  
  
'Gelby! Can you weaken it for us?' I asked. My small friend jumped off my shoulders and landed on the ground in front of me.  
  
'You know I'm not like them,' she reminded me.  
  
'I know that! But you still have some electricity, Gelby. And we really need a pokémon,' I pleaded. Gelby sighed, then nodded. She turned to face the charmander and it turned to face her.  
  
Charmander made the first attack. It bounded forward and scratched Gelby on the face. Sand-Cloud gasped. I held my breath. Gelby was getting ready.  
  
'Don't be too tough on it,' Sand-Cloud warned. Gelby knew what she was doing. She jumped as the charmander tried another scratch. The charmander fell to the ground. Gelby took the opportunity to give it a small electric shock, enough to weaken it quite a bit.  
  
'That should do it,' I said to Gelby. She stepped back as I got ready. I aimed. I threw the pokéball and the charmander was zapped inside it. All three of us waited as the pokéball shook. It must have been the longest five seconds of my life, but as I saw the light go out and the ball stop moving, I knew it was worth it. With a grin, I stepped forward and picked up my first pokémon.  
  
'Yeah! We got a charmander!' I shouted happily.  
  
'Yeah!' Sand-Cloud shouted.  
  
'Good work Gelby!' I congratulated my friend. The pikachu smiled.  
  
'We finally got our first pokémon!' I said to the team.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part One, Chapter Two  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Chazz the charmander, Josh, Mitch Orien  
  
After taking our newly captured charmander - who we had named Chazz - to the local PokéCentre, we continued our walk through the village. We soon found ourselves in the famous Forest Maze.  
  
It was Gelby who noticed the bug catcher first. He had a huge net and appeared to be stalking a weedle. I watched as the bug catcher threw the net over the bug and threw a pokéball at it, capturing it instantly.  
  
'Good catch,' I said. The bug catcher turned around.  
  
'Thanks,' he said. 'My name's Josh. Who are you?'  
  
'We're Team Yellow,' I replied. 'I'm Janet, and these are my friends, Sand-Cloud and Gelby.'  
  
'You're a trainer?'  
  
I nodded.  
  
'Come on then, let's battle!'  
  
I gulped. I'd never been in a battle before. But, I nodded and Sand- Cloud handed me a pokéball.  
  
'Chazz! I choose you!' I called as I threw it. My charmander appeared.  
  
'Char!' it growled.  
  
'Caterpie!' Josh said. 'I choose you!'  
  
He threw a pokéball and a caterpie appeared.  
  
'Chazz! Scratch attack!'  
  
'Caterpie! Tackle it, now!'  
  
I bit my lip as Chazz fell to the ground.  
  
'Scratch! Quick!' I shouted. Chazz obeyed.  
  
'String shot, Caterpie!' Josh called. Chazz evaded the attack.  
  
'Good work, Chazz! Now scratch it!' Chazz did so, and the enemy caterpie fell over.  
  
'Caterpie! Return!' Josh shouted, holding out his pokéball. His caterpie was zapped back inside. I looked up at Josh.  
  
'You're pretty good, Janet,' he said.  
  
'Really?' I was amazed. 'That was my first go!'  
  
'That charmander of yours, it's really strong,' said Josh. 'I declare you the winner!'  
  
'Thanks,' I smiled, and called Chazz back inside my pokéball.  
  
'Maybe I'll see you again, sometime,' said Josh. He waved and walked off into the forest.  
  
'Yay!' Sand-Cloud shouted. 'You won!'  
  
I grinned, and kept walking. It was not long before I noticed another trainer, but one I recognised.  
  
'Well, if it isn't Team Yellow,' sneered Mitch, my number one rival.  
  
'Yes, it's us,' I said calmly.  
  
'And we just won a battle,' added Sand-Cloud.  
  
'Really? Is that so? Well, let's see if you can win another one! Go, Bulbasaur!'  
  
I took a look at Mitch's bulbasaur. It looked very strong. I wasn't sure if Chazz could handle it.  
  
'Well what are you waiting for?' Mitch asked with a grin. I glared at him and sent out Chazz.  
  
'Bulbasaur, tackle!'  
  
'Dodge it, Chazz! Growl, now!'  
  
'Tackle it, Bulbasaur!'  
  
'Scratch, Chazz!'  
  
I was amazed at my charmander. It scratched the bulbasaur with amazing strength.  
  
'Bulbasaur, return!' Mitch shouted. I smiled. I couldn't believe Chazz had won!  
  
'Go, Rattata!' Mitch shouted. I gulped. How could I forget, not everyone had only one pokémon!  
  
'Rattata, tail whip! Now, tackle it!'  
  
'Charr!' Chazz yelped. I could tell it was hurt.  
  
'Stop!' I yelled at Mitch. 'Chazz, return!'  
  
'Giving up so easily?' Mitch asked.  
  
'You weren't playing fair,' I objected. 'I only have one pokémon!'  
  
'Only one?' Mitch laughed. 'I have seventeen! How was I supposed to know I was so much better than you?'  
  
With a laugh he walked away. I sighed and sat down. I looked at the pokéball containing Chazz and sighed again.  
  
'Chazz, come out,' I said and threw the ball. My charmander appeared. 'Are you OK, Chazz?'  
  
'Char,' Chazz nodded. I smiled and let Chazz stay out of the pokéball. I stood up and started to walk again.  
  
'Janet! Hey Janet, is that you? Janet, wait up!'  
  
~Janet~  
  
Part One, Chapter Three  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Chazz the charmander, Potow the pidgey  
  
'Janet, wait up!'  
  
I turned around and saw a familiar figure running towards me.  
  
'Are you freaking deaf or what?' he asked.  
  
'Sorry,' I smiled. 'I didn't know it was you, Luke. How've you been?'  
  
'Oh, great!' Luke smiled. 'I just caught my first pokémon!'  
  
'Really, me too!' I said. 'Meet my charmander, Chazz!'  
  
'Char!' Chazz greeted Luke.  
  
'Hiya,' said Luke. He threw a pokéball. 'Squirtle, come out!'  
  
I watched the little squirtle appear.  
  
'Meet Squirtle, everyone!' Luke grinned. I could tell he was very proud of himself.  
  
'Squirtle!' Squirtle introduced himself.  
  
'You're not giving them nicknames?' I asked my friend.  
  
'Nah, it's too hard to think of them,' said Luke. 'Unless you can think of some for me.'  
  
'You've gotta catch some more first,' I reminded him.  
  
'Yeah, yeah, I know,' said Luke. 'It was hard enough catching this one!'  
  
'Squirtle!' Squirtle agreed. I laughed.  
  
'Look!' Sand-Cloud pointed. I turned and spotted a pidgey. 'Is that a, uh, a spearow?'  
  
'No, I think it's a pidgey,' I told her. Luke took out his pokédex.  
  
'Pidgey,' it read, 'a flying pokémon, it is a common sight in forests and woods. It flaps its wings at ground level to kick up blinding sand.'  
  
'I'll capture it!' I said. 'Go, Chazz!'  
  
'Char!' Chazz said. The pidgey faced it.  
  
'Growl at it, Chazz!' I commanded. Chazz did so. The pidgey fought back with a powerful gust. 'Quick Chazz, scratch it, now!'  
  
Chazz scratched the pidgey. Before it could attack back, I threw a pokéball at it. It was zapped inside. We waited. The light turned off.  
  
'Yeah! We got Pidgey!' I shouted, picking up the pokéball. When prompted for a nickname on my pokédex, I keyed in "Potow".  
  
'Good work, Janet,' said Luke. I smiled.  
  
'Char,' sighed Chazz. I looked at it. It was weak.  
  
'Sorry I made you do that, Chazz,' I said. 'Come on, you'd better come back.'  
  
I held out my pokéball and Chazz returned to it.  
  
'How long is this forest?' Luke asked.  
  
'I don't know,' I replied. 'I've never been here.'  
  
'It's in your kingdom,' Luke pointed out. I shrugged, not bothering to tell him that the Reflexion Kingdom was three times the size of his kingdom, the Whirlpool Kingdom.  
  
We walked in silence, through the thick forest.  
  
'What's that noise?' Gelby asked.  
  
'What noise?' I replied.  
  
'THAT noise!' Gelby shouted, pointing to a swarm of Beedrills.  
  
'Oh no!' I shouted.  
  
'Go, Squirtle!' Luke shouted.  
  
'Squirtle!' said Squirtle.  
  
'Go, Potow!' I shouted. My newly-caught pidgey appeared.  
  
'Pidgey!' it called.  
  
'Gust attack, Potow!'  
  
'Tackle them, Squirtle!'  
  
I could tell the beedrills were too strong for Potow. It fell out of the sky, exhausted.  
  
'Go Chazz!' I knew Chazz was weak, but it was in better condition than Potow.  
  
'Scratch them Chazz!' I shouted. Chazz tried. The beedrills were too strong.  
  
'No!' I shouted. I called Chazz back.  
  
'It's all up to Squirtle now,' I told Luke. He nodded nervously.  
  
'Tackle them Squirtle! You can do it!' he shouted. The squirtle was too weak. The beedrills swooped down on us.  
  
'NOOO!'  
  
~Janet~  
  
Part One, Chapter Four  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson  
  
I woke in the darkness of the forest. It was cold. I shivered.  
  
'You alright, Janet?' Luke asked, touching my hand. I nodded.  
  
'Is everyone here?' I asked. Luke nodded, pointing to two figures which appeared to be Sand-Cloud and Gelby.  
  
'You dropped one of your pokéballs, Janet,' said Gelby.  
  
'Oh wait, is this it?' Luke asked, pulling a pokéball out from under his back.  
  
'Thanks,' I said as he placed it in my hand. Then a thought hit me. 'Where's Squirtle?'  
  
Even in the darkness I could see Luke's face turn pale.  
  
'Oh no!' he said. 'It was fighting the beedrills before they got us! What if--'  
  
'It'll be alright, Luke,' I said. 'It's probably around here somewhere.'  
  
'Well come on, let's find it!' Luke said, getting up. I grabbed his hand.  
  
'Wait, Luke!' I said. 'You won't be able to see it in this light, you'll be wasting your time. Wait until it gets light, it won't be able to get far in its condition anyway.'  
  
Luke sighed and sat down next to me. 'I hope it's alright.'  
  
'It will be,' I assured him.  
  
'It's the only pokémon I've ever caught,' said Luke. 'I can't lose it!'  
  
I didn't know what to do. I'd never seen so depressed. I felt sorry for him, I knew I would feel just as bad if I'd lost Chazz or Potow.  
  
'It'll be alright,' I repeated. Luke nodded, but didn't move. We waited.  
  
It seemed to take forever, but eventually we saw the first rays of sunlight appear through the trees. It was morning.  
  
'Come on Luke,' I said, tapping him on the shoulder. 'Let's go find Squirtle.'  
  
Luke got up. I looked at my Team members. It appeared they had no intention of moving. We walked on without them.  
  
'Janet, what if we don't find it?' Luke asked suddenly.  
  
'We'll find it, Luke,' I replied.  
  
'What if, what if the beedrills did something to it?'  
  
I stopped and turned to face him.  
  
'Like what, Luke?'  
  
'I don't know, Janet!' he said. 'What if they took it away, or if they kidnapped it, or, or if they... killed it?'  
  
I gulped. 'I don't think so, Luke,' I said. 'They may be violent, but I don't think beedrills murder other pokémon.'  
  
'They nearly killed us,' said Luke.  
  
'Do I look nearly dead to you?' I asked. 'We'll find it, Luke.'  
  
'Janet...' Luke started.  
  
'Luke,' I interrupted. 'We will find your squirtle, alright? It has not been kidnapped, it has not been killed. IT'S GOING TO BE ALRIGHT!'  
  
Luke looked at me. I sighed and kept walking, remembering to look everywhere. Luke hesitated, then followed. We searched for an hour.  
  
'Janet, I'm telling you, it's not here,' said Luke. I stopped and faced him. He looked really sad.  
  
'Luke, I--'  
  
'We're not going to find it,' said Luke.  
  
'Luke, we're not leaving until we find out what has happened to your Squirtle, OK?' I told him firmly. Luke nodded. I looked at him closely. He had tears in his eyes.  
  
'Luke....' I was cut off by a familiar voice.  
  
'Squirtle!'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part One, Chapter Five  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Luke Smytheson  
  
Luke moved his head to look past me. I turned around, and smiled.  
  
'Squirtle!' Luke cried.  
  
'Squirtle,' said Squirtle weakly. Luke picked it up and hugged it.  
  
'Squirtle, I thought the beedrills had taken you,' he said, almost crying. I smiled as I watched Luke's happiness.  
  
'Told you we'd find it,' I couldn't help saying. Luke faced me.  
  
'Thanks, Janet,' he said. 'If it wasn't for you I would've given up ages ago.'  
  
'Well, we'd better find the others, then,' I said, ignoring his compliment. Luke nodded and looked around.  
  
'There's just one problem with that, Janet,' he said. I swallowed, realising what he meant. 'Which way did we come?'  
  
'Oh oh,' I said.  
  
'Exactly,' said Luke.  
  
'Squirtle?' said Squirtle, confused.  
  
'What are we going to do?' I asked. Luke shrugged.  
  
'We could wait for them to find us,' he suggested.  
  
'That won't work,' I said. 'They're the ones waiting for us, remember?'  
  
'We can just try and find them,' said Luke.  
  
'But what if we go the wrong way?' I asked. 'We could be going for hours before we realised!'  
  
'Well, what do you suggest?' Luke asked. I shrugged.  
  
'You wouldn't have a map, would you?' I asked.  
  
'No,' he replied. 'And besides, my backpack's back with the others. And I know you don't have a map, 'cause you don't even bother to carry a backpack.'  
  
I noticed the sarcasm in his voice. 'Sandy wanted to carry it!' I objected.  
  
'Oh yes,' smiled Luke. 'I know how much you enjoy watching that poor little yoshi carry your stuff for you. You're so mean, Janet!'  
  
'Shut up, Luke!' I said. I knew he was joking, but somehow I wasn't in the mood for jokes. 'Let's just get back to the others, OK! At this rate we're gunna be stuck here for the rest of our lives!'  
  
'Calm down, girl!' Luke said. 'I was only joking!'  
  
'I know Luke,' I said. 'I just want to get back to Gelby and Sand-Cloud, OK?'  
  
Luke nodded and put Squirtle on the ground.  
  
'What do you think we should do, Janet?' he asked. I shrugged.  
  
'Come on, you're normally great at thinking of things,' he said. I looked at him.  
  
'No I'm not, Luke,' I said. 'I can never think of things!'  
  
'Same diff,' smiled Luke. 'Come on, let's just look for them.'  
  
He grabbed my hand and pulled me along, neither of us having any idea of where we were going. I noticed Squirtle puffing.  
  
'Slow down,' I said. Luke stopped, let go of my hand and faced me.  
  
'What's wrong?' he asked. I pointed at Squirtle.  
  
'Can't you put it in a pokéball?' I asked. Luke shook his head.  
  
'My pokéballs are in my bag, back with Gelby and Sand-Cloud,' he explained.  
  
'Well, Squirtle looks like it's ready to faint,' I said. I bent over and picked it up. 'I'll carry it.'  
  
Luke nodded and we kept walking. We walked for three hours, making no progress.  
  
'Luke, we're lost,' I stated.  
  
'I know,' said Luke. We both sighed and sat down on the hard ground. I put Squirtle down in front of me and looked at Luke.  
  
'We'll be OK,' he said, although he didn't sound too sure. I reached over and held his hand. We sat there for nearly half an hour, feeling sorry for ourselves. Then, we heard a voice.  
  
'Well well well. It's my old friend Luke!'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part One, Chapter Six  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Luke Smytheson, Mitch Orien  
  
We both turned around. I glared at the figure before me. It was Mitch.  
  
'How's your pokédex coming along, Luke?' Mitch asked. 'You can't be any worse than your little friend Janet.'  
  
'Leave us alone, Mitch,' said Luke.  
  
'What? I was just being friendly,' Mitch lied. 'How about we see how good your pokémon really are? Come on, let's battle 'em!'  
  
'No thanks Mitch,' said Luke.  
  
'Come on, what's a little trainer battle between friends?'  
  
'My pokémon's not that well right now,' said Luke. 'Maybe some other time.'  
  
'This squirtle here?' That yours?' Mitch asked. 'No, it doesn't look too well. Tell ya what, how about I take it to a PokéCentre for you? I'll be going that way soon.'  
  
Luke turned to me. I shook my head.  
  
'Don't be stupid, Luke,' I whispered. 'You give that creep your squirtle and you'll never see it again!'  
  
'Come on Janet, he can't be that bad,' whispered Luke.  
  
'He can, Luke, trust me,' I said knowingly.  
  
'So, how about it Luke?' Mitch asked.  
  
'Hang on there, Mitch,' said Luke. He turned to me. 'If he's going to a PokéCentre he must know the way out of here!'  
  
'Luke...' I started. It was no use.  
  
'You know your way around here, Mitch?' Luke asked.  
  
'Sure do,' said Mitch.  
  
'Well, how about we come out with you?' Luke asked.  
  
'I guess you could do that,' said Mitch. 'But it could be a long trip. A few days even.'  
  
'Alright, I'm game,' said Luke, getting up. I grabbed his arm.  
  
'What are you doing, you idiot!?' I whispered angrily. 'What about Gelby and Sand-Cloud? Don't you care about them?'  
  
'Chill out!' Luke whispered. 'We get out of this forest, we buy ourselves a map, and we come back for your friends. Simple!'  
  
'But, but he said it'll take days,' I objected. 'I really don't trust this guy, Luke!'  
  
'Fine. If you can't think of anything better, you can stay here,' said Luke. 'But I'm going with Mitch.'  
  
I watched as he stood up.  
  
'OK, I'm ready,' he said.  
  
'Janet coming?' Mitch asked. Couldn't he talk to me directly?  
  
'No, she's gonna try and find her own way out,' said Luke.  
  
'Alright, let's go,' said Mitch. They started walking.  
  
'Wait!' I said. They turned around. I sighed. 'I'm coming.'  
  
I got up and walked over to them. Mitch sneered.  
  
'Glad you decided to join us, Janet,' he said. I glared at him. He started to walk. Luke looked at me, and smiled.  
  
'Thanks, Janet,' he said. 'It'll work out, you'll see.'  
  
'We'll see,' I said. 'I hope Gelby and Sand-Cloud are alright.'  
  
'Don't worry 'bout them for now,' Luke said, taking my hand. 'They'll be alright for a while. Then we'll come back for them and everything will be fine.'  
  
'Do you guys want to get out of this forest or not?' Mitch called back to us. Luke picked up Squirtle in his left hand and we hurried to catch up to Mitch.  
  
I walked on in silence. I tried not to look at Mitch, telling myself that he wasn't there. That it was just Luke and me. Of course it was no use, what with Mitch's occasional comments directed at me, most of which were unrepeatable.  
  
Within a few hours, it was dark again. We sat down around a fire. Luke and Mitch talked a bit, but I sat in silence. I couldn't believe that my number one rival used to be Luke's best friend. And the way they were talking, it sounded as if nothing had changed. Luke didn't seem to understand that Mitch and I just couldn't get on with each other.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part One, Chapter Seven  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Luke Smytheson, Mitch Orien  
  
'This forest is do huge,' Luke complained.  
  
'We'll be out by dark,' said Mitch. 'At least we won't have to sleep here anymore.'  
  
'Sleep?' Luke exclaimed. 'I didn't get any sleep last night.'  
  
'Unlike you, Mitch,' I commented. 'We couldn't sleep 'cause of you snoring.'  
  
'Yeah right,' said Mitch. I glared at him.  
  
'Shut up you two!' Luke said. 'Can't you say anything nice to each other?'  
  
'No,' I said. Luke sighed. I looked at the squirtle in his arms. It was looking pretty bad. 'Luke, we've got to get to that PokéCentre, quick!'  
  
Luke looked down at Squirtle. 'Mitch, is there any shorter way through here?'  
  
'No, mate,' said Mitch. 'Trust me.'  
  
'Trust you?' I said. 'Just about as far as I can throw you with a weight tied to each leg.'  
  
'Shut up Janet!' Luke said to me. 'Come on, we've got to hurry!'  
  
We quickened our pace. Squirtle was getting weaker and weaker. And so were we. Luke was puffing, finding it hard to cope with carrying the extra weight.  
  
'Luke stop,' I said, grabbing his arm. I lifted Squirtle out of his grasp and held it myself. 'You're tiring yourself out.'  
  
'Thanks,' he puffed. We kept going.  
  
It was hours before we reached the edge of the Forest Maze. When we did get through the last of the trees, we ran to the local PokéCentre and handed Squirtle to Nurse Joy.  
  
'I'll take care of it for you,' she said, taking it away.  
  
'Well, I'd better be off, Lukey!' Mitch called.  
  
'Bye, Mitch,' said Luke, 'and thanks.'  
  
'No problem,' said Mitch. 'Keep training them, you've gotta do better than your pathetic friend.'  
  
With that he left.  
  
'How do you get along with him, Luke?' I asked.  
  
'He used to be my best friend,' said Luke. 'I've gotta have some faith in the guy. He's really not that bad, Janet.'  
  
'He is, Luke,' I said. 'He's a creep.'  
  
'I give up,' sighed Luke. We went to sit in the waiting room. I could tell Luke was nervous. He kept looking at his watch and tapping his foot.  
  
'It'll be OK, Luke,' I said, holding his arm.  
  
'Janet, what if it's not OK?' he asked. 'Then what? It took me so long to capture it, I couldn't bear it if anything happened to it!'  
  
'Come on Luke, you know these places are really good,' I comforted him. He grabbed my hand. 'It'll be OK. You know it will.'  
  
'Janet, you're such a good friend,' said Luke. I looked at him. We'd known each other for years, but it was the first time he'd said anything like that.  
  
'I wonder how Sand-Cloud and Gelby are,' I said, trying to ignore what he'd said.  
  
'I'm sorry Janet,' Luke said.  
  
'What?' I asked.  
  
'I've been so worried about Squirtle, and myself,' he replied. 'I haven't bothered to ask you how you were. And I haven't even thought about Gelby and Sand-Cloud.'  
  
'I understand Luke,' I said. 'I was worried about Squirtle, too. I forgot about Gelby and Sand-Cloud a few times myself.'  
  
'I hope it's alright,' said Luke, holding my hand harder. We waited for what seemed like hours. Finally, the "operating" light went out.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part One, Chapter Eight  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Luke Smytheson, Nurse Joy  
  
Luke and I stood up as the door opened and two chanseys wheeled out the motionless body of Squirtle. Luke looked at his pokémon and tears formed in his eyes.  
  
'Squirtle's going to be fine,' said Nurse Joy. Luke looked up.  
  
'Really?'  
  
'Yes, it just needs a little time to recover,' replied Nurse Joy. 'You two should go out for a few hours, have a look at the town. There's a really good PokéMart nearby.'  
  
'Thanks, we'll do that,' I smiled and pulled Luke's arm. 'Come on.'  
  
We went to the PokéMart, deciding that we would buy some pokéballs and try to capture some more pokémon.  
  
I was at the counter when the storekeeper told me the price. It was then that I realised Sand-Cloud had my money. I smiled hopefully at Luke. He rolled his eyes and dug into his pocket. He pulled out his wallet and payed for our purchases.  
  
'Thanks, Luke,' I said as we left the shop. 'I'll pay you back, I promise.'  
  
'Don't worry about it,' said Luke. 'Want to go see what we can capture?'  
  
'Now?' I asked. 'I think we might need Squirtle, to weaken them.'  
  
'You're right,' nodded Luke. We walked around the town for a few hours, then decided to go and get Squirtle.  
  
'Thanks so much,' said Luke as he picked up Squirtle.  
  
'You should keep it in a pokéball you know,' said Nurse Joy.  
  
'Yeah, I know,' said Luke. 'But I lost my pokéballs in the Forest Maze.'  
  
'It lives up to its name, that place,' sighed Nurse Joy. 'If you're going back there, you should take this.'  
  
She handed over a map of the forest. We thanked her, and hurried back to the forest. It was not long before we saw a female nidoran.  
  
'Go, Squirtle!' Luke called. Squirtle stepped forward.  
  
'Squirtle!' it challenged.  
  
'Tackle it, now!' Luke ordered. Squirtle did so. The nidoran looked pretty weak. 'That's enough, Squirtle.'  
  
Luke threw a pokéball. The nidoran was zapped inside. Soon enough, the light turned out. Luke picked up the pokéball.  
  
'I got Nidoran, Janet!' he showed me.  
  
'Good work, Luke,' I said, patting him on the back.  
  
'It looked pretty weak,' said Luke. 'Do you think I should get it healed?'  
  
I shrugged. 'Maybe you could catch another one first.'  
  
'OK!' Luke said enthusiastically. We walked through the forest and eventually came to a bellsprout.  
  
'What is that thing?' Luke asked.  
  
'I think it's a bellsprout,' I replied, pulling out my pokédex.  
  
'Bellsprout,' it read, 'a grass and poison pokémon. It is a carnivorous pokémon that traps and eats bugs. It uses its root feet to soak up needed moisture.'  
  
'Go, Squirtle!' Luke pointed at the bellsprout.  
  
'Luke, water pokémon are weak against plant pokémon!' I warned him.  
  
'I know,' he replied. 'But I only need to weaken it a little.'  
  
I shrugged and watched the battle. Luke caught the bellsprout with ease. I was amazed at him.  
  
'Look Luke, a pikachu!' I said, pointing. Luke got out his pokédex.  
  
'Pikachu,' it read. 'An electric pokémon. When many of these pokémon gather, their electricity could build and cause lightning storms.'  
  
Luke placed a pokéball in my hand.  
  
'You catch it,' he said. I started to object. 'I know you like pikachus. And besides, you saw it first.'  
  
'Thanks, Luke,' I said. 'I won't need Squirtle. Pikachus are easy to catch.'  
  
I threw the pokéball.  
  
'Pika pi!' the pikachu shouted. But it was too late. It was zapped inside instantly. I'd caught it.  
  
'What should I called it?' I asked Luke as I picked it up.  
  
'Pika pi,' said Luke simply. I laughed and keyed "Pikapi" into my pokédex.  
  
We both smiled. We had some new pokémon. All we'd have to do now, was find Gelby and Sand-Cloud.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part One, Chapter Nine  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Luke Smytheson, Pikapi the pikachu, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Josh the bug catcher  
  
We healed our newly captured pokémon before returning to the forest.  
  
'We still have no idea where they are,' said Luke, reading the map.  
  
'Yeah, but at least we'll be able to find our way out of here,' I reminded him.  
  
'That's true,' he nodded.  
  
'I hope we find them,' I said.  
  
'We will,' Luke assured me. 'They can't have gone far.'  
  
We walked on, searching. Suddenly, we heard voices, and footsteps approaching. Luke grabbed my arm, indicating to me the direction from which the sounds were coming. We stood still, listening.  
  
'So did they desert you or what?'  
  
'No, they wouldn't do that.'  
  
'I don't know what's happened.'  
  
'What if they did leave us?'  
  
'They wouldn't do that, you know they wouldn't!'  
  
'Yeah, of course we wouldn't!' I said, smiling.  
  
'Janet!?' it was Sand-Cloud's voice. She came running through the trees. 'Janet, where were you?'  
  
'Yeah, what's your explanation?' I looked up. It was Josh.  
  
'Hi, Josh,' I said. Gelby appeared from behind him.  
  
'What have you two been doing?' she demanded.  
  
'Well we were looking for Squirtle,' I explained. 'When we found it we realised we were lost. Then Mitch found us and took us to a PokéCentre. We healed Squirtle, got a map, and came back for you guys.'  
  
'Hang on,' said Sand-Cloud. 'You went with Mitch to this place!?' I sighed.  
  
'I had no choice,' I told her. Sand-Cloud raised her eyelids at me. 'And look what I got!'  
  
I threw my pokéball. Pikapi appeared.  
  
'Wow! A pikachu!' Gelby exclaimed.  
  
'Luke got two new pokémon,' I added. Luke threw his pokéballs, and introduced Nidoran and Bellsprout.  
  
'You've been looking for these?' Sand-Cloud asked, handing me two pokéballs.  
  
'Chazz and Potow!' I exclaimed. 'I'd completely forgotten! We've got to get them to a PokéCentre, quick!'  
  
'No point,' said Gelby. I freaked out.  
  
'WHAT!?' I couldn't believe it. Surely they hadn't -  
  
'We healed them for you,' said Gelby. 'Remember those potions you bought?'  
  
'I am so stupid,' I said, hitting my forehead. 'How could I have forgotten? I could've used them earlier!'  
  
'Well anyway, I'd better be off, Janet,' said Josh with a wave.  
  
'Leaving so soon?' I asked.  
  
'Got bugs to catch,' smiled Josh. 'See you later!'  
  
I waved goodbye and looked down at Sand-Cloud and Gelby. It was so good to see them again.  
  
'Come on, let's get out of here,' said Luke.  
  
'Wait,' I said, pointing to a weedle I'd just spotted. 'I'll capture it! Go, Potow!'  
  
Potow emerged from my pokéball.  
  
'Gust attack, Potow!'  
  
Potow used Gust, then the weedle stung Potow.  
  
'Sand-attack, now!'  
  
Potow kicked up sand into the weedle's face. It tried another sting, but missed.  
  
'Gust, Potow!'  
  
Potow used Gust. The weedle toppled over.  
  
'That's enough, Potow!' I threw a pokéball. The weedle was caught!  
  
'Yeah! I got weedle!' I shouted as I picked it up. 'What should I call it?'  
  
Unable to think of anything, I typed "Weedie" into my pokédex.  
  
'It's getting dark,' Gelby observed. 'We'd better sleep here tonight.'  
  
'Not again,' groaned Sand-Cloud.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part One, Chapter Ten  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Ace, Kat, Weedie the weedle, Nidoran (F).  
  
When I woke in the morning I knew something was wrong. I got up and checked my backpack. To my horror, there was only one pokéball inside. With a gulp, I checked Luke's backpack. Again, only one.  
  
'Luke,' I said, shaking him. 'Luke, someone's taken our pokémon!'  
  
Luke got up quickly. 'What!?'  
  
'I've only got Weedie,' I said, showing him my pokéball. 'And you've only got one, too!'  
  
Luke picked up his pokéball.  
  
'Nidoran,' he said. 'Oh no! Squirtle's gone AGAIN! And Bellsprout, too!'  
  
'What's going on?' Gelby asked, getting up.  
  
'Our pokémon are gone!' I told her.  
  
'And you'll never see them again,' said a voice. I turned around and saw two teenage trainers.  
  
'Who are you?' I asked.  
  
'We, we are Ace and Kat,' said the girl with a laugh.  
  
'And look what we've got,' said the guy, Ace. He held out five pokéballs.  
  
'Give those back!' Luke ordered. 'They're ours!'  
  
'Not anymore,' said Ace.  
  
'You can't take our pokémon!' said Luke.  
  
'Too late,' smiled Kat.  
  
'Why'd you take them?' Sand-Cloud demanded.  
  
'You were just lying there, so innocently,' said Kat. 'We couldn't resist!'  
  
'So why did you leave Nidoran and Weedie?' Luke asked.  
  
'They're so weak,' said Ace. 'As if we'd want them!'  
  
'So, they're weak are they?' Luke asked. 'Let's see how weak YOUR pokémon are! Go, Nidoran!'  
  
'What are you doing?' I asked, grabbing Luke's arm. 'They ARE our weakest pokémon!'  
  
'We can beat them,' said Luke. I sighed.  
  
'Weedie, I choose you!' I threw the pokéball.  
  
'"Choose"?' Ace laughed. 'You didn't have much choice.'  
  
I glared at him. 'Are you going to fight or not?'  
  
'It wasn't a smart move, challenging us,' said Kat. 'Go, Paras!'  
  
'Go, Abra!' said Ace.  
  
'You go for Paras, I'll go for Abra,' I whispered to Luke, quickly deciding what would be more effective.  
  
The battle started. Paras and Abra were strong. Luckily, Weedie had the advantage over Abra, and Nidoran had the advantage over Paras. Soon, Ace and Kat called back their pokémon.  
  
'Giving up?' Luke taunted.  
  
'You win this time,' muttered Kat.  
  
'But we'll be back,' added Ace. They dropped out pokéballs and ran in the other direction. I picked up my own three pokéballs.  
  
'Chazz, Potow, Pikapi,' I said. 'I'm so glad to have you back!'  
  
Luke already had Squirtle out of the pokéball.  
  
'I thought you really were gone for good this time,' he said.  
  
'Squirtle!' Squirtle agreed.  
  
'Now, can we get out of this forest?' I asked.  
  
'Hang on,' said Luke. 'There's something over there!'  
  
He pointed to something moving in the bushes.  
  
'Squirtle,' said Luke. 'Go and find out what's in there!'  
  
'Squirtle!' said Squirtle, walking over to the bushes. 'Squirtle!'  
  
'What is it?' Luke asked. He went over to Squirtle. I followed. Squirtle was pointing at a geodude.  
  
'What's a geodude doing in the forest?' I asked.  
  
'I don't know,' said Luke. 'But I'm going to catch it! Squirtle, tackle it!'  
  
Squirtle rushed over to the geodude and tackled. The geodude tackled it back. It appeared to be very strong.  
  
'Squirtle! Tackle!' Luke called. Squirtle missed the geodude and fell to the ground.  
  
'Geodude!' said the geodude. Suddenly, it started throwing rocks at Squirtle.  
  
'What's it doing?' Luke asked.  
  
'I think it's a move,' I replied.  
  
'Squirtle, tackle!' Luke called.  
  
'Squirtle,' said Squirtle weakly. The geodude was obviously strong. Luke sighed.  
  
'Squirtle, return!' he called. 'Pokéball! Go!'  
  
Luke threw a pokéball and it hit the geodude, zapping it inside. The ball shook wildly and then broke open. Luke threw another pokéball. This time, the ball shook a bit less. But, just when Luke was about to pick it up, it broke open again.  
  
'Oh no,' said Luke. 'I'll need to weaken it some more. Go, Bellsprout!'  
  
Luke threw his pokéball and Bellsprout appeared.  
  
'Bellsprout! Vine whip!' Luke called. Bellsprout's vines were super effective against geodude! But, it still looked strong. 'Bellsprout, give it another vine whip! Go, pokéball!'  
  
Luke threw his pokéball and geodude was zapped inside. This time, the light on the ball went out.  
  
'Finally,' sighed Luke. 'Bellsprout, return!'  
  
Luke picked up his new pokémon.  
  
'That was so hard to catch,' he said.  
  
'At least that means it's strong,' I said. 'Now, can we get out of here?'  
  
'Good idea,' said Sand-Cloud, picking up our backpack. Luke gave me a look. I glared at him.  
  
'You know,' said Gelby. 'I hope you both learned a valuable lesson from this morning.'  
  
We turned to face her.  
  
'What's that?' Luke asked.  
  
'Never sleep in again!' Gelby laughed.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part One, Chapter Eleven  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Ace, Kat, Weedie the weedle, Nidoran (F)  
  
After finally making it out of the forest for good, we walked through the town and came to a long road on the other side.  
  
'Where does this road lead?' Gelby asked. I shrugged.  
  
'Who knows where this path shall lead us on our quest?' Sand-Cloud asked in her stupidest voice. 'Who knows what obstacles Danger shall throw before us when we least expect it? Who -'  
  
'Sand-Cloud!' I interrupted. 'Shut up!'  
  
'How do you guys all put up with each other?' Luke asked.  
  
'We don't,' I laughed. 'We just ignore each other.'  
  
'Some "team" you are then,' grinned Luke.  
  
'At least we've got company, unlike you!' I said.  
  
'Yeah, why are you hanging around us anyway?' Sand-Cloud teased. Luke frowned.  
  
'Well if that's your attitude, I'll go,' he said.  
  
'Come on, Luke, it was a joke,' I said. 'We don't mind, really.'  
  
'Or do we?' Sand-Cloud said. I rolled my eyes.  
  
'But seriously,' said Luke. 'I can't hang around with you guys forever. I mean, I'm going to have to go sooner or later. You guys are the team, not me.'  
  
'You can go whenever you want,' I told him. 'But we don't mind having you here.'  
  
Luke nodded. Now that he was with us, I could hardly imagine what it would be like without him. He WAS one of my best friends, and I knew that once he left, I wouldn't see him for a long time.  
  
As we walked down the road, we saw two people in front of us. They turned around and we realised that they were Ace and Kat.  
  
'Not them,' sighed Luke.  
  
'What, you're not happy to see us?' Ace asked. 'How are those pokémon coming along?'  
  
'How about we find out?' Kat asked. 'Go, Paras!'  
  
'Go, Abra!'  
  
'Come on Janet,' said Luke. 'We can beat them. Nidoran, go!'  
  
'Weedie, I choose you!'  
  
'Using those weaklings again?' Kat laughed. 'You can't win!'  
  
'Weedie, poison sting!'  
  
'Nidoran, tackle!'  
  
'Abra, confusion!'  
  
'Paras, scratch!'  
  
The battle went on. Nidoran and Weedie came close to defeat, but at the last moment, Abra's attack failed and Paras's missed, and we won!  
  
'You win this time,' said Ace.  
  
'But we'll be back,' added Kat. They left us.  
  
'Yeah, we won!' Luke shouted.  
  
'Yeah!' I shouted.  
  
'Janet, look!' Sand-Cloud said, pointing to Weedie. What was happening to it?  
  
'Janet, it's - ' Luke started.  
  
'Evolving!' I finished happily. I watched as Weedie hardened and formed Kakuna!  
  
'Wow,' said Luke. 'I've never seen anything like it!'  
  
I picked up the new-look Weedie. It looked pretty strange.  
  
'Weedles and caterpies,' said Sand-Cloud. 'They evolve really quickly.'  
  
'I nearly got a caterpie,' said Luke. 'But, I missed it. I ended up with Squirtle though! I can't wait for one of my pokémon to evolve!'  
  
'It'll happen eventually,' I told him. 'Just keep battling.'  
  
'Yeah,' said Luke. We continued walking. Soon, the road came to a fork.  
  
'Which way?' Sand-Cloud asked.  
  
'That way,' Luke and I said in unison, pointing in opposite directions. We looked at each other and laughed.  
  
'Well, just decide!' said Sand-Cloud.  
  
'Janet,' said Luke. 'How about I go that way, and you guys go that way? Now's as good as any time to split, and you know we have to eventually.'  
  
I gulped, and shrugged. 'Whatever, Luke.'  
  
He nodded, and hugged me. 'Bye, Janet.'  
  
We stood, waving, as Luke walked away from us. Soon he was out of sight.  
  
'Stop crying Janet,' said Sand-Cloud.  
  
'I'm NOT crying,' I said, and turned my back on her.  
  
~Janet~  
  
END OF PART ONE 


	4. Part Two

Part Two, Chapter One  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Andrew the Pokémon Leader of water, Nurse Joy, Pikapi the pikachu, Potow the pidgey  
  
A few weeks had passed since Luke had left us. In that time, I had caught a rattata, who was named Bybee, and a caterpie, who was named Catafree. Luckily, I hadn't come across Ace and Kat, or even Mitch, and my pokémon were growing well.  
  
We were in a town called Blastoise Centre, named so because there was a pokémon Gym there, whose leader was the water pokémon trainer Andrew. I knew that if I was to become a pokémon master, I would need to defeat him. Knowing that electricity was good against water, I trained Pikapi to become my strongest pokémon. Finally, I gathered my courage and entered the Gym.  
  
'You want to challenge me?' Andrew asked. I nodded. 'Alright, you know the rules. It's basically a trainer battle... but a lot harder!'  
  
I nodded again.  
  
'Poliwhirl, go!' Andrew said, throwing a pokéball.  
  
'Pikapi, I choose you!' I threw my pokéball.  
  
'Pika!' Pikapi challenged its opponent.  
  
'Poliwhirl, water gun!'  
  
'Pikapi, thundershock!'  
  
'Bubble, Poliwhirl!'  
  
'Another thundershock, Pikapi!'  
  
The battle was hard, but Pikapi was strong. Eventually, Andrew called back his pokémon.  
  
'That was pretty good, girl. Let's see you handle this!'  
  
He threw a pokéball and a blastoise appeared. I gulped. How could Pikapi handle that?  
  
'Thundershock, Pikapi!'  
  
To my amazement, it had little effect.  
  
'Blastoise, water gun!'  
  
'Pika!!!' Pikapi squealed.  
  
'Pikapi, return!' I shouted, calling it back. I turned to Andrew. 'I give up.'  
  
'You can use one of your other pokémon,' said Andrew.  
  
'They're too weak,' I sighed. I left the Gym and went to the PokéCentre.  
  
'His blastoise is very strong,' Nurse Joy told me. 'You won't be able to beat it just with your pikachu.'  
  
'But I don't have any other electric pokémon!' I objected.  
  
'Not only electricity is good against water, you know,' said Nurse Joy. 'You should try a grass-type pokémon.'  
  
'Really?' I asked. She nodded. 'But I don't have any grass pokémon either!'  
  
'You don't?' Nurse Joy asked. 'Well, I could just have a solution to your problem! I found an abandoned bulbasaur last week and no-one's claimed it. If you can help me out, I'll give you that pokémon!'  
  
'You will!? What do you want me to help you with?' I was so happy!  
  
'You have a pidgey, don't you? I need you to get it to fly a letter to my sister in the Reflexion Kingdom,' said Nurse Joy. 'Will you do it?'  
  
'The Reflexion Kingdom? Of course I'll do it!' I got up and called Potow out of its pokéball. 'Potow, will you fly to the Reflexion Kingdom for me? It's very important.'  
  
'Pidgey,' Potow nodded. Joy handed it the letter and it flew away.  
  
'Thank you Janet,' she said, and held out a pokéball. 'Here's your bulbasaur. Its name is Raus.'  
  
I took the pokéball. Just as I was about to take Raus out, the pokéball disappeared!  
  
'You've already got six pokémon out,' Joy explained. 'You'll have to swap it for one via PC!'  
  
She showed me how to use the pokémon storage system. I swapped Raus for Chazz, knowing fire was weak against water.  
  
'I'm going to train Raus!' I said, picking up my new pokémon and running out the door. With both Pikapi and Raus trained to a high level, I would just have to beat Andrew!  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Two, Chapter Two  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Pikapi the pikachu, Raus the bulbasaur, Andrew the Pokémon Leader of water  
  
I trained Raus and Pikapi for three days, determined that I would beat the gym master with them. Finally, I decided it was time to face him again. With Sand-Cloud and Gelby following, I entered the gym.  
  
'Look who's back,' said Andrew.  
  
'I'll beat you this time,' I told him.  
  
'Don't be too sure. Go Poliwhirl!'  
  
'Pikapi! I choose you!'  
  
'Poliwhirl, bubble!'  
  
'Pikapi, thundershock!'  
  
'PIKACHU!' Pikapi shouted, letting out an enormous thundershock. The gym leader was amazed.  
  
'Poliwhirl, you can beat it! Hypnosis!'  
  
I watched as Pikapi fell into a trance.  
  
'No!' I shouted. 'Pikapi, come back! Raus, go!'  
  
'Bulba!' said Raus.  
  
'Raus, vine whip!'  
  
Poliwhirl fainted under the power of Raus's grass move.  
  
'Poliwhirl, return! Go, Blastoise!'  
  
'Bulbasaur!' Raus was scared.  
  
'You can do it! Vine whip, now!'  
  
'Water gun, Blastoise!'  
  
'Raus, vine whip!'  
  
I could tell that Raus's attacks were powerful, but I could also tell that Blastoise was at a very high level. But, I knew Raus could do it.  
  
'Vine whip, Raus!'  
  
'Tackle, Blastoise!'  
  
It was a critical hit! Raus had nearly fainted!  
  
'Raus, return! Pikapi, go! Come on Pikapi, wake up!'  
  
Pikapi slowly opened its eyes. Blastoise was getting its water guns ready.  
  
'Chu!' Pikapi squealed, jumping up instantly.  
  
'Thundershock, quick!'  
  
Pikapi gathered its energy.  
  
'P-I-K-A-C-H-U!!' it shouted. Its thundershock was incredible. Blastoise was getting weak.  
  
'Finish it off, Pikapi! Thundershock!'  
  
That was all it took. The blastoise fainted.  
  
'No! You, you can't!' Andrew said. 'You're so good! I haven't been beaten for six months! Here, take this badge!'  
  
'Thank you,' I smiled as he handed me the badge.  
  
'You, with that pikachu,' Andrew said. 'You have the power to become pokémon masters!'  
  
'Thanks,' I said. Holding my badge, I left with a smile. I had won the first in a long line of battles that would lead me to become a pokémon master. Happily, we returned to the pokémon centre. There, I got my pokémon healed.  
  
'Your bulbasaur,' said Nurse Joy, 'that battle made it grow a lot. I think it's going to evolve soon!'  
  
'Really?' I was excited. 'But, what about Pikapi? It battled even harder!'  
  
'Your pikachu is at a very high level,' said Nurse Joy. 'But that won't make it evolve. You need a thunder stone to make a pikachu evolve.'  
  
I nodded as she handed me my six pokéballs (including Potow, who had recently returned). I decided to swap Weedie for Chazz, feeling guilty that I'd left my first pokémon behind.  
  
'Good luck, Team Yellow,' said Nurse Joy. 'I hope you succeed in becoming masters!'  
  
'Thanks!' I said with a wave. We left the pokémon centre and continued down the long road.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part One, Chapter Three  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Mitch Orien, Catafree the caterpie  
  
We walked on, wondering where our journey would take us next. I was eager to get more badges, but I remembered how hard it was to get the first one, and I knew I'd have to train my pokémon well before I tried.  
  
'I wonder how Luke is,' I said suddenly.  
  
'Who knows?' Gelby replied.  
  
'I hope he's doing well,' I said. I sighed. 'When do you reckon we'll see him again?'  
  
'I don't know,' said Sand-Cloud.  
  
'You don't care either, do you?' I asked.  
  
'He's YOUR friend, Janet, not ours,' said Sand-Cloud. 'I barely even know him!'  
  
I rolled my eyes. Sand-Cloud DID know him, not as well as I did, of course, but she did know him. But she was right. Luke wasn't their friend, he was mine. I didn't mind when he tagged along with us, but did they?  
  
'Well, look who's here,' said a familiar voice. I turned around. It was Mitch.  
  
'Get lost Mitch,' said Sand-Cloud.  
  
'What? I'm here on a friendly visit,' said Mitch. 'I saw your little friend Lukey yesterday.'  
  
'Oh you did, did you?' I said, trying to sound like I didn't care.  
  
'Yeah, I beat him in a battle,' said Mitch. 'Kind of like what I'm about to do with you. Go, Bulbasaur!'  
  
'So you want to fight, do you?' I said. 'You do realise I have a badge!'  
  
'So what?' Mitch laughed. 'I have two!'  
  
I gritted my teeth. 'Catafree! I choose you!'  
  
'Bulbasaur, tackle it!'  
  
'String shot, Catafree!'  
  
'Growl at it, Bulbasaur!'  
  
'Tackle it Catafree, now!'  
  
'Growl, Bulbasaur!'  
  
'Tackle, Caterpie!'  
  
'Tackle, Bulbasaur!'  
  
Bulbasaur's attack missed. I smiled.  
  
'Tackle, Catafree! And again! Once more!'  
  
'Bulbasaur, return!' Mitch said. He turned to me. 'Alright, I'm letting you off easy.'  
  
'Yeah right,' I said. 'You just can't take losing.'  
  
'I don't need to, 'cause I never lose,' said Mitch.  
  
'Well, you just did,' I said with a grin. Mitch glared at me.  
  
'If you're looking for your little friend, he's been staying in Buttress City for a while,' he said. I didn't say anything, not sure whether I should believe him or not. 'Well, I'd better me going. I'm sorry to disappoint you by leaving so soon.'  
  
With a laugh, he walked off.  
  
'Do you reckon he was telling the truth, about Luke?' Gelby asked as we started walking again.  
  
'I don't know,' I said. 'But I don't know where Buttress City is anyway, so it doesn't really matter.'  
  
'We keep seeing Mitch everywhere,' said Sand-Cloud. 'Surely we'll bump into Luke somewhere along the way.'  
  
'Yeah,' I said. 'I want to see how he's doing.'  
  
'Me too,' said Gelby. 'How many pokémon do you think he has?'  
  
'I don't know,' I replied. 'He's probably caught a few more.'  
  
'Well, we could just be about to find out,' said Sand-Cloud. She pointed to a sign reading "Buttress City 300m on left".  
  
'Do you think he'll be there?' I asked.  
  
'I've got no idea,' said Sand-Cloud. 'But it won't hurt to find out. Come on!'  
  
We broke into a run. I couldn't wait to get to Buttress City now!  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part One, Chapter Four  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson  
  
As soon as we got to Buttress City, I began looking in every direction, searching for the familiar face of my friend. Suddenly, someone grabbed my arm. I turned and saw an old man smiling at me.  
  
'You, girl,' he said. 'You're a pokémon trainer?'  
  
I nodded.  
  
'There was another trainer here, a boy,' he told me. 'He was asking me if I'd seen a trainer matching your description.'  
  
'Really?' I asked. Could he really mean Luke was here?  
  
'Yes,' he said. 'It was only about ten minutes ago. When I told him I hadn't seen you, he said he'd go on without you.'  
  
'Which way did he go?' I asked. The man pointed. I nodded. 'Thank you so much!'  
  
I ran in the direction he had pointed in. I ran straight through the city and came to the long road on the other side. Ahead of me, I could just make out someone walking. I ran on, determined to see if it was Luke. Soon enough, I could tell.  
  
'Luke!' I called. 'Luke! Luke, it's me!'  
  
He turned around and faced me.  
  
'Janet,' he smiled. I caught up to him.  
  
'Luke,' I puffed. He put a hand on my shoulder.  
  
'Sit down, you're killing yourself,' he said. I smiled and sat on the ground. He sat down next to me.  
  
'I just ran sooo far,' I said, half laughing, half puffing. Luke laughed. 'It's not funny! It's your fault, anyway!'  
  
He laughed again. When I got my breath back, we stood up and walked together. Soon we decided to stop for the night. We sat down and talked about what we had done while we'd been away from each other. Luke had only caught one new pokémon, although his geodude and his nidoran had evolved into graveler and nidorina. Apparently, his geodude had been at a very high level and had evolved after the first battle he had fought with it. However, Luke's path hadn't taken him to any pokémon gyms, so he still didn't have any badges, and was finding it hard to control Graveler.  
  
'I'm going to sleep,' yawned Gelby after a while.  
  
'Me too,' said Sand-Cloud. They lay down and slept. Luke and I were silent for ages.  
  
'I really missed you,' said Luke, breaking the silence. I rolled my eyes, not wanting, for some reason, to tell him that I'd missed him too.  
  
'I saw Mitch today,' I said, changing the subject. 'He told me you were in Buttress.'  
  
'Did he?' Luke asked with a smile. I knew what he was getting at.  
  
'Luke,' I said. 'He's still a bad person.'  
  
'Why, Janet?' Luke asked. 'I used to get on so well with him, but now...'  
  
'Look Luke,' I said. 'I know it's my fault you're not best friends anymore. I'm really sorry about that. But, I can't change the fact that he's a creep.'  
  
'How can you say that, Janet?' Luke asked. 'He used to be a perfectly nice guy. He still is, I guess--'  
  
'No he's not, Luke,' I said.  
  
'Why can't you just tell me what's so bad about him?' Luke asked. 'He's my friend, and you're my friend, so why can't both of you be friends?'  
  
'If he was really your friend, you wouldn't need me to tell you,' I said. 'Why doesn't he just tell you himself?'  
  
Luke sighed. 'Let's talk about it later. We'd better get some sleep now.'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Two, Chapter Five  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Simone  
  
As we travelled the next day, we heard the sound of horses approaching. Curious, we turned around. A teenage girl was riding on a rapidash, and two ponytas were following.  
  
'Hello,' she said. 'My name's Simone.'  
  
'Hi Simone,' said Luke. 'I'm Luke, and this is Janet, Sand-Cloud and Gelby.'  
  
'Are you all pokémon trainers?' Simone asked. We nodded. 'That's great! I'm a fire pokémon trainer, but I got given a psyduck from my sister. Would any of you like to trade a fire pokémon for my psyduck?'  
  
'Psyduck?' Luke asked. 'That's a water pokémon, right?'  
  
Simone nodded.  
  
'I like water pokémon,' said Luke. He took out five full pokéballs. 'But I don't have any fire pokémon. Hey Janet, you have a charmander, right?'  
  
'Yeah...' I said. 'But it was my first pokémon. I don't want to trade it away. Sorry Simone.'  
  
'That's alright,' said Simone. 'I already have a charmander. Although, it's a charizard now!'  
  
'Charizard!?' I exclaimed.  
  
'Yeah,' said Simone. 'I raised it from a charmander since I was little. Well, Luke, if you really want Psyduck, I guess I could trade you for another pokémon.'  
  
'Really?' Luke asked. Simone nodded. Luke looked at his pokéballs, obviously trying to decide which one to trade. Finally he looked up. 'How would you like my graveler?'  
  
'Graveler?' Simone thought about it. 'Yeah, alright!'  
  
I watched as Luke and Simone switched pokéballs. Luke smiled at his new pokéball, then threw it.  
  
'Psyduck!' said the pokémon. Luke smiled. Then, Simone threw her new pokéball. Graveler emerged, but.. it seemed to be growing.  
  
'What's it doing?' Luke asked. Then he realised the truth. The graveler that had once been his was now evolving into.. Golem!  
  
'Wow!' said Simone. 'Even better than I wanted!'  
  
Luke stared, open mouthed, at the newly-evolved pokémon. He started shaking his head.  
  
'If only it had evolved five minutes earlier,' he muttered. 'Then I never would have traded it!'  
  
'Don't you see?' Sand-Cloud said. We turned to face her. 'Graveler must be one of those pokémon that evolves when you trade it!'  
  
'That's it!' said Simone. 'That's what made it evolve so fast!'  
  
'Oh,' said Luke.  
  
'Look,' said Simone. 'That wasn't really a fair trade. Neither of us were expecting it. I'd give you another pokémon, but they're so valuable to me. So how about I lend you one of my ponytas for a few days? They run really fast, they'll get you anywhere really quickly if you ride them.'  
  
'Really?' I asked.  
  
'I don't mind,' said Simone. 'It's as a thanks for giving me such a great pokémon. How about it?'  
  
'How can we resist?' I asked. Simone showed us which ponyta we could borrow and I climbed on.  
  
'I can't ride horses,' Luke said nervously.  
  
'You don't need to,' I said. 'You just need to hold on.'  
  
'I seem to be able to manage,' said Gelby, who was sitting on my shoulders. Luke shrugged and got ready to climb up.  
  
'Hang on,' said Sand-Cloud. 'I'm smaller than you. You have to help me up.'  
  
Luke rolled his eyes. He bent down and lifted Sand-Cloud up onto the ponyta. She sat in front of me. Then Luke climbed up behind me. I took the reins.  
  
'Thanks so much,' I said.  
  
'It's only fair,' said Simone. 'When you're done with Ponyta, just tell it to come back to me.'  
  
'How will it know?' Sand-Cloud asked.  
  
'It's good friends with Charizard and Arcanine,' said Simone. 'They can always find each other.'  
  
'Thanks again,' said Luke.  
  
'Good luck,' said Simone. She waved and I shook the reins. The ponyta started to walk.  
  
'Having fun, Luke?' Gelby asked after a while.  
  
'I can tell I'm going to fall off,' said Luke. Gelby laughed.  
  
'Hold on,' I grinned and broke the ponyta into a gallop.  
  
'Janet, what are you doing!?' Luke yelled. I slowed the ponyta to a stop, laughing. Gelby and Sand-Cloud were laughing too.  
  
'It's not funny,' said Luke. 'You totally freaked me out!'  
  
'That was the idea,' I said with a smile. 'Come on, it's getting dark.'  
  
We stopped and got off the ponyta. Luke was finding it hard to stand.  
  
'You need practice, Luke,' I told him.  
  
'Yes, you've shown me that,' said Luke. We all laughed.  
  
'You'll be OK tomorrow,' I said.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Two, Chapter Six  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Mitch Orien, Chazz the charmander, Raus the bulbasaur, Catafree the caterpie, Potow the pidgey, Pikapi the pikachu, Bybee the rattata  
  
The next day, Luke did a lot better on the ponyta. We rode on, making really good progress. But soon enough, Mitch appeared.  
  
'Where'd you steal that from?' he asked, gesturing at the ponyta.  
  
'We're not like you, Mitch,' I said. 'We don't steal.'  
  
'You don't train very well either,' said Mitch. 'Come on Janet, let's see your pokémon!'  
  
'Alright,' I said, jumping down from the ponyta. 'Chazz, I choose you!'  
  
'Raticate, I choose you!' Mitch said, throwing his pokéball.  
  
'Chazz, ember!'  
  
'Raticate, hyper fang!'  
  
I gasped. Chazz wasn't doing too well.  
  
'Chazz, scratch!'  
  
'Raticate, quick attack!'  
  
'Chazz, return!' I called. 'Go, Raus!'  
  
'Raticate, tail whip!'  
  
'Raus, vine whip!'  
  
Raus was my strongest pokémon, so it was really powerful against Raticate.  
  
'Raticate! Return!' Mitch shouted. 'Go, Jigglypuff!'  
  
'Raus, tackle!'  
  
'Jigglypuff, sing!'  
  
'Jigg-a-lee-puff,' sang his pokémon. 'Jigg-a-lee-ee-ee-puff!'  
  
Raus slowly closed its eyes, then fell to the ground. It was asleep!  
  
'Return, Raus!' I said. 'Go, Catafree!'  
  
'Jigglypuff, sing!' Mitch shouted. Not again! Catafree fell asleep!  
  
'Catafree, return!' I called. 'Potow, you can do it!'  
  
'Jigglypuff, sing!'  
  
This was getting annoying. Potow fell asleep. I called it back and sent out Pikapi.  
  
'Thundershock!' I called. Pikapi electrocuted Mitch's jigglypuff. It was paralysed!  
  
'Jigglypuff, sing!' Mitch shouted. But, Jigglypuff was paralysed. It couldn't move.  
  
'Return, Jigglypuff!' Mitch called. 'Go, Machop!'  
  
'Pikapi, thundershock!' I called.  
  
'Machop, low kick!' said Mitch. His Machop was too strong for Pikapi. It was nearly fainted.  
  
'Return Pikapi!' I called. 'Go Bybee!'  
  
'Machop, low kick!' Mitch called.  
  
'Rattata!' Bybee squealed.  
  
'Bybee return!' I called. I would have to send out Chazz again. 'Chazz, go! Ember!'  
  
'Machop, karate chop!' It was too strong. Chazz fainted!  
  
'OK,' I sighed. 'You win.'  
  
'You're hopeless, Janet,' said Mitch. 'Even Luke's got to be better than you. Wanna find out, Luke?'  
  
Luke got off the ponyta.  
  
'Alright,' he said. 'Sandshrew, I choose you!'  
  
'Go, Bulbasaur!' Mitch called. 'Bulbasaur, vine whip!'  
  
'Sandshrew, scratch!'  
  
Luke's sandshrew was pretty strong. But, I knew that Mitch's bulbasaur was stronger.  
  
'Bulbasaur, tackle it!'  
  
Sandshrew took the attack well.  
  
'Sand-attack, Sandshrew!'  
  
'Bulbasaur, vine whip!' Bulbasaur's attack missed.  
  
'Sand-attack!'  
  
'Tackle it Bulbasaur!' Again, it missed.  
  
'Sandshrew, return,' called Luke. 'Go Squirtle! Tackle, Squirtle!'  
  
Mitch's bulbasaur fainted.  
  
'Return!' Mitch called. 'Go Voltorb!'  
  
'Water gun Squirtle!' Luke shouted. It had little effect.  
  
'Thunderbolt, Voltorb!' Mitch ordered. The electricity was strong against Squirtle. But Luke wouldn't give up.  
  
'Return Squirtle!' he called. 'Go Bellsprout!'  
  
'Tackle it Voltorb!'  
  
'Bellsprout, wrap!' Bellsprout had Voltorb caught in its roots. It couldn't attack. It was getting weak.  
  
'Return!' Mitch called. His pokéball missed. The voltorb was almost fainted.  
  
'Alright that's enough,' said Mitch. 'I don't think this battle is very fair. I mean, I had to fight both of you in a row. You had an unfair advantage.'  
  
'Just face it,' I said. 'You lost.'  
  
'No, I--' Mitch started.  
  
'You're a loser!' I said. 'Luke won, fair and square. Now leave us alone will you?'  
  
Mitch called back his pokémon and left without another word.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Two, Chapter Seven  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Chazz the charmander  
  
We rode quickly, knowing we would have to heal our pokémon soon. But, there were no PokéCentres in sight. Soon we came to a cave entrance. There was a sign out the front.  
  
"This tunnel leads to Citrus City."  
  
'Citrus City should have a PokéCentre,' said Gelby.  
  
'Come on then,' I said. 'Let's go.'  
  
'But look at the entrance,' said Luke. 'It's so tiny we'll barely be able to fit through, let alone the ponyta.'  
  
I sighed. 'I guess we'll have to send it back to Simone.'  
  
'Guess so,' said Luke as we climbed off. He turned to the ponyta. 'Go back to your mistress, OK?'  
  
The ponyta nodded and walked away. I looked at the cave entrance. It was very small. Luke and I would have to crawl through.  
  
'Come on,' said Gelby. She ran towards the entrance and laughed as she walked through with ease. Sand-Cloud followed, having to crouch as she went through.  
  
'Are you guys coming?' Sand-Cloud called from inside the cave. 'It's much bigger inside. You won't have to crouch.'  
  
'Come on Janet,' said Luke, pulling my hand. 'You go first.'  
  
I walked over to the entrance and got down on the ground. I crawled through. When I got to the inside of the cave I stood up.  
  
'Come on Luke,' I called. He came crawling through, and stood up next to me.  
  
'It's dark,' he said.  
  
'I know,' I replied.  
  
'Janet,' said Sand-Cloud. 'Get Chazz out. We can use its fire to light the way.'  
  
'It's fainted,' I reminded her. 'It won't be able to walk!'  
  
Sand-Cloud picked up a stick. 'Well,' she said. 'We can at least light this from its tail.'  
  
I nodded and called Chazz from its pokéball.  
  
'Ch-charr?' it said weakly.  
  
'Hang on Chazz,' I said as Sand-Cloud put the stick to its tail. 'We'll get you to a PokéCentre. I promise. Return!'  
  
Sand-Cloud held up the flaming torch. We finally saw how big the cave was. It was huge - and it seemed to go on forever.  
  
'Well, come on,' said Luke. 'The sooner we get through here, the better.'  
  
We walked on. Suddenly Sand-Cloud stopped.  
  
'What is it?' Gelby asked.  
  
'Listen,' Sand-Cloud replied. We did so. We heard the sound of digletts.  
  
'Look!' Gelby pointed to two digletts. I turned to Luke.  
  
'There's two!' I said. 'Let's capture them!'  
  
Luke nodded. 'They look weak. We can probably just use a pokéball.'  
  
'Go pokéball!' I threw one of mine. One of the digletts was zapped inside. It shook violently. Just when I thought it was about to break out, the light turned off. 'Quick, Luke! Catch the other one!'  
  
'Go pokéball!' Luke threw his pokéball. The other diglett was zapped inside. The pokéball shook. Suddenly, it broke open!  
  
'Damn,' said Luke. He took out another pokéball. 'Go pokéball!'  
  
This time, the light turned out quickly. Happily, Luke and I picked up our new pokémon. I took out my pokédex and registered my diglett. I named it "Dougg".  
  
'Since we both got digletts,' said Luke. 'I'd better name mine too. What should I call it?'  
  
'What about Shovel?' I asked. Luke nodded and keyed "Shovel" into his pokédex. Luke then put his pokéball away. I was about to put mine away when to my surprise it disappeared!  
  
'What happened?' I asked.  
  
'You're already carrying six pokémon,' said Luke.  
  
'Of course,' I said, slapping my forehead.  
  
'Come on then,' said Sand-Cloud. 'Let's get out of here!'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Two, Chapter Eight  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Ace, Kat, Officer Jenny  
  
We hadn't walked very far when we came across Ace and Kat.  
  
'Well well well,' said Kat.  
  
'If it isn't our little friends,' said Ace.  
  
'We'd love to stay and beat you in a battle,' smiled Kat. 'But we have to go. We have important business.'  
  
'We're mining,' said Ace, showing us a pick.  
  
'Mining? What for?' Sand-Cloud asked.  
  
'Stones,' replied Kat. 'In this cave you can find thunder stones, moon stones, leaf stones, fire stones, water stones... anything!'  
  
'But don't think you're going to find any,' said Ace. He held up a bag. He opened it, showing us the hundreds of stones inside. 'We're going to find ALL of them!'  
  
'You LOSE this time!' said Kat. She and Ace laughed and walked away.  
  
'Wow,' said Sand-Cloud. 'If we could just get a few of those stones...'  
  
'I think right now we should just try and get through this tunnel,' I said. 'Once we see what's on the other side we can come back for stones.'  
  
'Yeah, OK,' said Sand-Cloud.  
  
'And we really need to heal our pokémon,' said Luke.  
  
'Come on then,' said Sand-Cloud. We all walked on, knowing that we'd have to find a PokéCentre soon. But the cave seemed to go on forever.  
  
'This reminds me of that stupid forest,' said Luke. 'We're going to be stuck here forever!'  
  
'What's worse,' said Gelby, 'is that we don't know what time it is. It's too dark in here to tell. So we won't know when to sleep.'  
  
'Far out, Gelby,' said Sand-Cloud. 'Who cares?'  
  
'I do!' said Gelby defensively.  
  
'Look guys,' said Luke. 'What do you think watches are for?'  
  
He pointed to his wrist. He was wearing a watch.  
  
'Oh,' said Gelby. 'Well that's alright then.'  
  
We kept on walking, but it was only a few minutes before we suddenly heard a voice.  
  
'Stop right there, you three!'  
  
'Four,' muttered Gelby as we turned around.  
  
'I am Officer Jenny from the Citrus City Police,' said the person who had called us. 'We've had reports of thieves stealing valuable pokémon evolution stones from this cave.'  
  
'Stealing?' Sand-Cloud asked.  
  
'Yes,' said Jenny. 'The stones in this cave are illegal to take without a mining permit. But recently almost all of the stones have disappeared. We have heard rumours about two people who are stealing the stones!'  
  
I looked at Luke.  
  
'Ace and Kat,' we said together.  
  
'What?' Jenny asked.  
  
'Officer Jenny, I think we just might be able to help you out,' said Luke. 'We know these two people who had a whole bag of stones!'  
  
'That must be them! Come on, if you can help me find them, I'll give you a lift to Citrus City on my bike,' said Jenny.  
  
We nodded. This was looking better than we'd thought!  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Two, Chapter Nine  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Officer Jenny, Ace, Kay, Nurse Joy  
  
We searched for hours, but couldn't find Ace and Kat anywhere.  
  
'Are you sure you saw these people?' Jenny asked us.  
  
'Yes!' said Luke.  
  
'Um,' said Gelby. She pointed. 'They're over there.'  
  
We turned and saw Ace and Kat putting even more stones in their bag. They hadn't even noticed us standing there!  
  
'Go, Growlithes!' Jenny called, throwing her six pokéballs. Six growlithes emerged. 'Get em, Growlithes!'  
  
'Grrr,' said the Growlithes. They approached Ace and Kat.  
  
'What's this?' said Ace, turning around. 'Go Abra!'  
  
'Go, Paras!'  
  
'Growlithes, fire spin!' Jenny said.  
  
'This isn't fair!' sad Ace as he watched his abra and Kat's paras faint. 'Six on two!'  
  
'I don't think you're fair,' said Jenny. 'You two should know that it's illegal to take stones from this cave.'  
  
'It is!?' Kat said in fake exclamation. 'Honestly officer, we didn't know.'  
  
'How could we know?' Ace added. 'We came all the way from Buttress City, and no one there told us!'  
  
'Hmmm,' said Jenny. 'They really should put up a sign or something outside the cave. OK then, tell you what. You hand over those stones and I'll let you off. ONCE.'  
  
Ace sighed and handed Jenny the bag of stones.  
  
'We'll be back,' Kat warned us. She and Ace walked away.  
  
'Come on,' said Jenny. We followed her out of the cave, where her bike was. It was a struggle, but we all managed to fit on and ride to Citrus City.  
  
'Thanks for the lift,' said Luke.  
  
'Before you go,' said Jenny, 'take one of each of these stones for each of you. I won't know what to do with them.'  
  
'Thanks!' said Luke. We both took five different stones. We waved goodbye to Jenny and went to heal our pokémon at the PokéCentre.  
  
'It's getting late,' said Nurse Joy. 'You guys should stay here tonight.'  
  
'I didn't know we could do that,' I said.  
  
'Oh, all pokémon and their trainers are welcome to stay at PokéCentres,' said Joy. 'In fact we have four other trainers here already. Come on, I'll show you the room.'  
  
Nurse Joy showed us a big room filled with beds. At the far end of the room we saw four girls talking and holding some of their pokémon. Joy left us to meet them.  
  
'Hi,' said Luke. 'I'm Luke. You guys are trainers?'  
  
'Yeah,' said one of the girls, who was holding a flareon. 'I'm Sylvia, and we're a pokémon team called The Stars.'  
  
'Really?' I asked. 'I'm in a pokémon team called Team Yellow. My name's Janet, and these are my other members, Sand-Cloud and Gelby.'  
  
'My name's Lia,' said a girl who was holding a vaporeon. 'I train ice pokémon, although I keep water pokémon too, because there aren't many ice pokémon.'  
  
'I'm Tara,' said a girl who was holding a raichu. 'I train electric pokémon.'  
  
'And obviously, I train fire pokémon,' Sylvia added. We looked at the other girl, who was holding a slowpoke. 'That's Vanessa. Vanessa! Hello?'  
  
Vanessa turned around and saw us. 'Oh, hi! I'm a psychic pokémon trainer. Psychic pokémon are the best pokémon of all, don't you think? Do you have any psychic pokémon?'  
  
I shook my head.  
  
'I have a psyduck,' said Luke.  
  
'Oh, really!?' Vanessa exclaimed. 'I always wanted a psyduck! Can I have a look?'  
  
'I guess so,' said Luke. He threw a pokéball and Psyduck appeared.  
  
'Psyduck!' it said.  
  
'Oh, it's so cute!' said Vanessa. She patted Psyduck on the head.  
  
'Uh, sure,' said Luke. He didn't seem to like Psyduck very much, because he had traded it for his graveler, which had then evolved into Golem.  
  
'Anyway,' said Lia. 'We're all trying to find the legendary pokémon of our type. I'm trying to catch Articuno, Tara is trying to catch Zapdos, Sylvia is trying to catch Moltres and Vanessa is trying to catch Mewtwo.'  
  
'What are legendary pokémon?' Sand-Cloud asked.  
  
'The legendary pokémon are the rarest of all,' said Tara. 'There are hardly any left, and even if you are lucky enough to find one, they are difficult to catch. As far as we know, there is only one pokémon rarer than these four.'  
  
'Mew,' I said knowingly. Tara nodded. Vanessa sighed.  
  
'Mew,' she said. She sighed again.  
  
'Hey, are you guys heading out again tomorrow?' Tara asked. 'You could walk with us for a while.'  
  
'Yeah, OK,' said Sand-Cloud. After that, we all went to sleep.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Two, Chapter Ten  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Sylvia the fire pokémon trainer, Lia the ice pokémon trainer, Tara the electric pokémon trainer, Vanessa the psychic pokémon trainer  
  
The next day, the eight of us left the pokémon centre together. We all talked to each other as we walked.  
  
'So, Janet,' said Sylvia. 'Where are you from?'  
  
'The Reflexion Kingdom,' I replied.  
  
'Really!?' Sylvia exclaimed. 'We're from just near there - the Star Kingdom!'  
  
'Wow,' I said. 'That's cool!'  
  
We kept talking, and I eventually found out that Sylvia knew Mitch.  
  
'Luke still doesn't believe me that he's a creep,' I told her. I turned to Luke. 'Hey Luke! Sylvia knows Mitch!'  
  
Luke turned to Sylvia, 'He's really not that bad, is he? Tell Janet he's not that bad.'  
  
'Sorry Luke,' said Sylvia. 'I agree with Janet. Mitch is an idiot.'  
  
Luke sighed. 'What is so bad about him?'  
  
'You obviously don't know him as well as you think you do,' said Sylvia. She turned back to me. Luke sighed and went back to talking with Tara. We walked for a few more hours, when suddenly Mitch appeared on the side of the road. He looked at our companions.  
  
'Well look at that,' he said. 'Sylvia of the Star Kingdom.'  
  
Sylvia looked at Mitch.  
  
'Mitch,' she said. 'I thought I'd seen the last of you.'  
  
'You thought wrong,' Mitch replied. 'Now let's see how good a pokémon trainer you are. Go, Ivysaur!'  
  
My shoulders slumped. I had really hoped that my bulbasaur would evolve before Mitch's. That would have really showed him!  
  
'You want a fight,' said Sylvia. 'You'll have a fight. But you won't win. Ponyta! I choose you!'  
  
'Ivysaur, leech seed!'  
  
'Ponyta, ember!'  
  
'Ivysaur, tackle!'  
  
Mitch's ivysaur was powerful. Although Sylvia's fire attacks worked well, the leech seed prevented them from doing much damage.  
  
'Ponyta return!' Sylvia called. 'Go Flareon!'  
  
'Ivysaur return!' Mitch called. 'Go Jigglypuff!'  
  
Oh no, I thought. It would send all Sylvia's pokémon to sleep!  
  
'Flareon!' Sylvia said with a grin. 'Hypnosis!'  
  
What!? I'd never heard of a flareon who knew hypnosis. But, it worked. Jigglypuff fell asleep.  
  
'Jigglypuff return!' Mitch said angrily. 'Go Staryu!'  
  
'Flareon! Fire spin!'  
  
'What!?' Mitch exclaimed. His Staryu had nearly fainted! 'That's impossible! Fire is WEAK against water!'  
  
'Maybe your staryu's just bad,' said Sylvia.  
  
'Staryu return!' Mitch called. 'Alright Sylvia, what's with your Flareon?'  
  
'Nothing's "with" my Flareon,' said Sylvia. 'It's just better than your pokémon.'  
  
Mitch glared at Sylvia, then walked away without another word.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Two, Chapter Eleven  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Sylvia the fire pokémon trainer, Lia the ice pokémon trainer, Tara the electric pokémon trainer, Vanessa the psychic pokémon trainer, Bybee the rattata, Catafree the caterpie  
  
'So Sylvia,' said Luke. 'Tell us. What really IS with your flareon?'  
  
'Well,' said Sylvia. 'I've been training it for years. I got it as an eevee and when it evolved it became my strongest pokémon. That's all there is to it!'  
  
'So how come it knows Hypnosis?' Sand-Cloud asked.  
  
'Oh, it learnt that ages ago, when it was an eevee,' said Sylvia. 'Vanessa's hypno sent it to sleep and psychically taught it the hypnosis move.'  
  
'Wow!' I said. 'Psychic pokémon can do that?'  
  
'Well,' said Vanessa, speaking up. 'It did take a long, long time. We failed many times. But I was convinced that Hypno was powerful enough to teach a pokémon of another type a psychic move. It would have been harder if it was a flareon, but it was an eevee at the time so it wasn't as hard as it could have been.'  
  
'Wow,' said Luke. 'You guys are so smart!'  
  
'Yeah, sure,' said Tara.  
  
'But anyway,' said Sylvia. 'We probably should be moving on.'  
  
'Really?' I said. 'Goodbye then.'  
  
The four girls waved to us and walked in the opposite direction.  
  
'Janet,' said Luke. 'Maybe I should be moving on, too.'  
  
'Already?' I asked.  
  
'I've been with you for a while now,' said Luke. 'I think I'll go to Thunder Town to get the electric badge.'  
  
'OK,' I said. 'I'm going to Botanical City to get the grass badge.'  
  
'See ya, then,' said Luke.  
  
'Bye Luke,' I said.  
  
'Bye Luke,' said Sand-Cloud and Gelby together.  
  
'Bye guys,' said Luke, waving to us. We all waved back.  
  
'Come on then,' I said. 'Let's get to Botanical City. I want that grass badge!'  
  
We started hurrying down the road.  
  
'Hang on,' said Gelby.  
  
'What?' I said. Gelby jumped off my shoulders.  
  
'Look,' she pointed to a male nidoran. I pulled out my pokédex.  
  
'Nidoran, male,' it read, 'a poison pokémon, it stiffens its ears to sense danger. The larger its horns, the more powerful its secreted venom.'  
  
'Go, Bybee!' I called, throwing a pokéball.  
  
'Nido!' said the nidoran, as it tackled Bybee.  
  
'Rattata!' shouted Bybee angrily.  
  
'Quick attack, Bybee!' I shouted. Bybee rushed forward and attacked. The nidoran tackled Bybee.  
  
'Tackle it Bybee!' I said. Bybee tackled the nidoran.  
  
'Bybee return!' I called. 'Pokéball go!'  
  
The nidoran was zapped inside the pokéball. It shook. Suddenly, it broke open.  
  
'Shoot,' I said. 'Go Catafree! Catafree, tackle!'  
  
Catafree tackled the nidoran. It tackled it back.  
  
'Catafree return!' I called. 'Pokéball go!'  
  
The pokéball shook. But, the light soon went out.  
  
'Yeah! We got Nidoran!' I shouted, picking it up. I named it "Nido", and it was transferred to PC.  
  
'Come on then,' said Sand-Cloud. 'We've got a long way to go.'  
  
~Janet~  
  
END OF PART TWO 


	5. Part Three

Part Three, Chapter One  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Nurse Joy, Chazz the charmander, Raus the bulbasaur  
  
The road to Botanical City was longer than we thought. In fact, it took us a week to reach the city. But finally we had made it. We went straight to the PokÃ©Centre.  
  
'That bulbasaur of yours,' said Joy as she handed me my pokÃ©balls, 'it's going to evolve soon.'  
  
'That's what your cousin told me,' I said. 'But it hasn't evolved yet.'  
  
'Just one or two more battles will do,' said Joy. I nodded.  
  
'What's the gym like here?' I asked.  
  
'It's a grass gym,' said Joy. 'The leader is Cindi. She uses pokÃ©mon like oddish, bellsprout and bulbasaur. If you want to beat her, try using your charmander.'  
  
'Thanks,' I said. I left the PokÃ©Centre and found the gym. I went inside.  
  
'Hi,' said a girl who was holding a gloom.  
  
'Hi,' I said. 'I'm Janet. Um, are you Cindi?'  
  
'Oh, no,' said the girl with a laugh. 'I'm her sister Ema. Do you want to battle me, as a practice?'  
  
'Uh, OK,' I said. Ema nodded.  
  
'Go Gloom!' she said.  
  
'Chazz! I choose you!' I threw my pokÃ©ball.  
  
'Charr!' said Chazz.  
  
'Gloom, poison powder!'  
  
I gasped as Gloom sprayed poisonous powder on Chazz. I gritted my teeth.  
  
'Chazz! Ember!'  
  
'Charr!' Chazz growled. The fire was powerful against Gloom although the poison was making it weaker.  
  
'Gloom, absorb!' said Ema. Her pokÃ©mon used its grass power to take some of Chazz's energy for itself. However, it didn't do much damage against my fire pokÃ©mon.  
  
'Ember!' I said. Chazz burnt Gloom badly.  
  
'Absorb!' said Ema. Gloom tried to attack, but the burn was too much for it.  
  
'Gloom!' Ema exclaimed. Her pokÃ©mon was almost fainted. 'Alright Janet. You win. Gloom, return!'  
  
'Come on,' I said. 'Let's go to the PokÃ©Centre.'  
  
Ema nodded and we walked to the centre together.  
  
'My sister is much harder than me,' said Ema. 'You might have a tough time beating her, even with your charmander.'  
  
'I know,' I said.  
  
'Actually,' said Ema. 'Maybe you should try going to the electric gym in Thunder Town first.'  
  
'My friend Luke's gone there,' I said. I paused. 'I wonder how he's going.'  
  
'I've heard that the electric badge is a lot easier to get than the grass badge,' said Ema.  
  
'Well,' I said. 'I reckon Chazz can handle your sister.'  
  
'OK,' said Ema. Nurse Joy handed us our pokÃ©balls. 'So, do you want to come back with me?'  
  
'Yeah,' I said. We walked back to the gym, where I saw Cindi waiting.  
  
'Cindi,' said Ema. 'This is Janet, from Team Yellow. She wants to challenge you.'  
  
'Alright,' Cindi nodded. I followed her into the battle arena of her gym. 'Weepinbell! I choose you!'  
  
'I choose you... Chazz!' I threw a pokÃ©ball. 'Chazz! Ember!'  
  
'Weepinbell! Wrap!' Cindi ordered. I gasped. Chazz was caught in Weepinbell's vines, and couldn't move! Angrily, I called it back.  
  
'Go! Raus!' I called, throwing a pokÃ©ball. 'Raus! Vine whip!'  
  
'Ha ha,' laughed Cindi. 'Give it your own vine whip, Weepinbell!'  
  
'Raus! Leech seed!' I called. As the leech seed sucked health from Weepinbell, Raus grew stronger. 'Vine whip, now!'  
  
Weepinbell's energy had drained a lot from the leech seed. It fainted!  
  
'Good work,' said Cindi. 'Go, Ivysaur!'  
  
'Bulba! Bulbasaur!' Raus growled at its evolved form.  
  
'Ivysaur!' said the pokÃ©mon smugly.  
  
'Bulba bulba bulbasaur!' Raus said angrily. Suddenly, the bulb on its back opened, and started to grow! I smiled. Raus was evolving!  
  
'Wow,' I said, as Raus became an ivysaur. I smiled at my pokÃ©mon. 'You evolved just to beat that ivysaur?'  
  
'Saur,' nodded Raus. 'Ivysaur!'  
  
I smiled. 'Vine whip, Raus!'  
  
'Tackle, Ivysaur!'  
  
'Vine whip, Raus! You can do it!'  
  
Unfortunately, the other ivysaur was stronger than Raus.  
  
'Raus, return!' I called, holding out my pokÃ©ball. Raus turned to me.  
  
'Ivysaur!' it growled, shaking its head.  
  
'It's too strong, Raus,' I said. 'You can't beat it!'  
  
'Ivysaur!' Raus its back on me, and tackled Cindi's ivysaur.  
  
'Alright Raus,' I said with a sigh. 'I'll let you battle. Vine whip!'  
  
Raus's vines whipped the ivysaur hard.  
  
'Saur!' it cried.  
  
'Good work Raus,' I said. 'Come on, just one more vine whip!'  
  
'Ivysaur!' Raus shouted, giving the ivysaur its best whip. Cindi's pokÃ©mon fainted.  
  
'Alright,' said Cindi. 'Your "Raus" is an excellent pokÃ©mon. Take this grass badge.'  
  
'Thank you,' I said, taking the badge.  
  
'Before you go,' said Cindi. 'How would you like to trade? Your ivysaur for my weepinbell?'  
  
I looked down at Raus. 'No way,' I said. 'I wouldn't trade Raus for any pokÃ©mon in the world.'  
  
'You are a kind trainer,' said Cindi. 'Good luck to you.'  
  
I picked up Raus happily, and left the gym, proud of my newly-evolved pokÃ©mon.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Three, Chapter Two  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Catafree the caterpie, Potow the pidgey, Raus the ivysaur  
  
We left Botanical City and continued down the road. We hadn't walked far when we heard a voice.  
  
'Ninetales!'  
  
I turned around and spotted a large ninetales growling at us.  
  
'Wow, a ninetales!' I exclaimed. 'I'll capture it! I choose you, Catafree!'  
  
'Ninetales!' the ninetales roared. Catafree shrieked and ran back to me.  
  
'What's the matter, Catafree?' I asked. 'Return! Go, Potow!'  
  
'Pidgey!' said Potow.  
  
'Potow! Gust attack!' I said, pointing at the ninetales.  
  
'NINETALES!' the ninetales roared. Potow was scared.  
  
'Potow! Return!' I called. 'Go, Raus! Raus, vine whip!'  
  
'Ivysaur!' said Raus. It sent out its vines. The ninetales got angry.  
  
'NINETALES!' it roared, breathing fire on Raus. But Raus was tough. It never backed out of battles.  
  
'Raus, tackle it!' I called.  
  
'Wait! Stop! What are you doing?' said a voice suddenly. 'This is my ninetales!'  
  
'Sorry,' I said. 'I didn't realise--'  
  
'You wouldn't have beaten it anyway,' said the girl who had just appeared. 'This ninetales is protecting its young. It wouldn't ever give up.'  
  
'Its young?' Sand-Cloud asked.  
  
'Yes,' said the girl. 'I'm Lucy, the vulpix breeder.'  
  
'You breed vulpixes!?' I exclaimed. 'That's great! I love vulpixes!'  
  
'Really?' said Lucy. 'Would you like to come and see mine?'  
  
'Yeah?' I said. 'Alright!'  
  
'Follow me,' said Lucy. We all walked with her to a small house. A few young vulpixes were playing outside.  
  
'They're so playful!' I said.  
  
'Yes,' said Lucy with a smile. She paused. 'Except that one.'  
  
She pointed to a small vulpix curled up on the ground. I looked at it closely, and saw that there was something different about it. Then I realised what it was - it only had one tail!  
  
'All its brothers and sisters reject it,' said Lucy. 'It was the youngest in the litter, but there's something strange about it. All its family has at least four tails already, but it still only has one.'  
  
'Why?' Sand-Cloud asked.  
  
'I don't know,' Lucy admitted. 'I can't work it out. But all the other vulpixes don't like it, because it's different to them.'  
  
'The poor thing,' I said. I walked over to the vulpix and bent down. 'Hello, little vulpix.'  
  
I stroked the vulpix's head. It looked up.  
  
'Vulpix?' it said quietly. It stood up and licked my hand.  
  
'It seems to like you,' said Lucy. 'Do you have your own vulpix?'  
  
'No,' I said. 'I've never found a wild one.'  
  
'Well,' said Lucy. 'I would like you to have this one.'  
  
'What!?' I exclaimed. 'Oh, I couldn't take your vulpix.'  
  
'No, I want you to,' said Lucy. 'I know you'd take care of it. No one else wants this vulpix, even though I've had offers to buy each of its brothers and sisters. I don't have enough time to train it, but if you trained it, it might even grow all six tails. That's what I'd really like.'  
  
'Are you sure?' I asked. Lucy nodded. 'Alright then. Does it have a name?'  
  
'Well,' said Lucy. 'I originally called it Tailz, but I don't think that name really suits it now.'  
  
'I'll make sure it lives up to its name,' I said. 'Come on, Tailz.'  
  
I took out a pokÃ©ball. Tailz backed away.  
  
'What's wrong?' I asked.  
  
'It doesn't like pokÃ©balls,' said Lucy. 'It likes to walk.'  
  
'OK,' I said. 'But in that case, I'll have to store one of my other pokÃ©mon.'  
  
'You can use my PC,' said Lucy. I followed her into the house, and stored Bybee by PC. Then I left the house.  
  
'Goodbye Tailz,' said Lucy. She bent down and patted Tailz.  
  
'Vulpix,' it said sadly.  
  
'Bye Lucy,' I said. 'And thanks.'  
  
'Take care of it,' said Lucy.  
  
'I will,' I said. 'I'll come visit you when it's got all its tails.'  
  
We left the vulpixes and Lucy, and continued down the road.  
  
~Janet~  
  
Part Three, Chapter Three  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Tailz the vulpix, Chazz the charmander  
  
'Hello,' said a voice. We turned around. A teenage boy was walking up to us. 'I'm Allin.'  
  
'Look at that!' Gelby gasped, pointing to a strange-looking bird flying next to Allin. It looked amazing.  
  
'Hi,' I said. 'I'm Janet, and this is Gelby and Sand-Cloud.'  
  
'Vulpix!' said Tailz.  
  
'And Tailz,' I laughed.  
  
'This is Spark, my zapdos,' said Allin. 'Spark! Say "hello" to these people.'  
  
'Hello,' said the zapdos. I stared at it in amazement. I had never seen a normal zapdos, let alone a talking zapdos!  
  
'A PALLET zapdos!?' Gelby exclaimed.  
  
'Actually, no,' said Allin. 'It's a pokÃ© zapdos.'  
  
'But...' Gelby started.  
  
'I know what you're thinking,' said Allin. 'It's a long story.'  
  
'Tell us!' said Gelby impatiently.  
  
'Well as you know, Zapdos is one of the rarest pokÃ©mon in the world,' said Allin. 'But my father was a very good pokÃ©mon trainer. I always went with him on his pokÃ©mon journeys, and I was with him the one time he found a zapdos. Unfortunately, he didn't catch it. But I looked around the spot where we'd seen the zapdos, and I found an egg. I took it with me. This was about three years ago, but finally last year the egg hatched. It was a baby zapdos. I kept it and named it Spark, and I took it with me when I started my own pokÃ©mon journey. But as I was training it, I realised it was extremely intelligent. It understood every word I said. So I thought, maybe I could get it to talk. And I did. I've been teaching it for a long time now - it can't talk perfectly but it can make understandable sentences.'  
  
'Wow,' said Gelby. 'That's incredible.'  
  
'It is, isn't it?' said Allin.  
  
'You must be a great trainer,' I said.  
  
'He is,' nodded Spark. I was amazed at it.  
  
'I have lots of other pokÃ©mon,' said Allin. 'But I take Spark with me everywhere. As well as being my most powerful pokÃ©mon, he's my friend.'  
  
'Yeah,' said Spark. I laughed.  
  
'So, where are you guys heading?' Allin asked.  
  
'I don't know,' I said. 'We're just following the road.'  
  
'Me too,' said Allin. 'Can I walk with you for a while?'  
  
'Sure,' I said. We started walking again. 'So, what other pokÃ©mon do you have?'  
  
Allin took out five pokÃ©balls. 'Right now, I've got voltorb, gyarados, cubone, primeape, and dratini,' he said. 'But I have more stored away. What about you?'  
  
'I've got... let's see,' I took out my pokÃ©balls. 'Pikachu, ivysaur, caterpie, charmander, and pidgey. And vulpix. And I've got some more on PC.'  
  
'You mean you've actually caught some?' said a voice. I turned around. It was Mitch.  
  
'Go away, Mitch,' I said.  
  
'Not until I beat you first,' said Mitch. 'Go, Ivysaur!'  
  
'Go Tailz!' I said, pointing at the ivysaur.  
  
'Vulpix?' said Tailz.  
  
'Go on Tailz,' I said. 'This is a pokÃ©mon battle.'  
  
Tailz shook its head and hid behind my legs. I sighed.  
  
'Alright then,' I said. 'Chazz! I choose you!'  
  
'Ivysaur, vine whip!' said Mitch.  
  
'Chazz! Ember attack, now!' I called.  
  
'Charr!' shouted Chazz.  
  
'Ivysaur, tackle!' Mitch ordered. Chazz dodged the attack.  
  
'Chazz! Scratch!' I said. Chazz scratched the ivysaur.  
  
'Ivysaur, return!' Mitch called. 'Go, Staryu!'  
  
'Chazz, return!' I called. 'Go...'  
  
'Vulpix!' said Tailz, stepping forward. 'Vulpix!'  
  
'No, Tailz! Come back!' I called.  
  
'Vulpix!' said Tailz.  
  
'It wants to battle,' said Gelby.  
  
'Tailz, you can't do it!' I said. 'Fire is weak against water!'  
  
But Tailz wouldn't come back.  
  
'Staryu! Water gun!' smiled Mitch. Staryu powerfully sprayed water at Tailz.  
  
'Vulpix!' Tailz squealed.  
  
'Tailz! Come back! Now!' I shouted. Tailz didn't move.  
  
'Staryu! Bubble!' Mitch shouted.  
  
'Vulpix!' Tailz shrieked. Suddenly, it fell to the ground.  
  
'Go away Mitch!' I shouted. 'Leave the poor thing alone!'  
  
I rushed forward and picked up Tailz.  
  
'So you give up?' Mitch asked.  
  
'Of course I give up!' I yelled back at him. 'Look what you've done to it! Now get lost!'  
  
Mitch backed off. I looked at Tailz. It was motionless.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Three, Chapter Four  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Allin, Spark the zapdos, Tailz the vulpix, Nurse Joy  
  
'We've got to get to a PokÃ©Centre!' I said. Allin nodded.  
  
'Come on then,' he said. 'Spark! Take the vulpix and fly to the closest PokÃ©Centre, quick! We'll be there as soon as we can.'  
  
Spark nodded and lifted Tailz in its talons. It looked much too heavy, but Spark seemed to manage it. It broke into a fast flight.  
  
'Spark will get it there,' said Allin. 'Come on, let's follow!'  
  
We ran as fast as we could, but Spark was a lot faster than us. By the time we reached the PokÃ©Centre in a place called Sunshine Town, Tailz had already been taken away to be healed.  
  
'Thank you so much, Spark,' I said.  
  
'Glad... to help,' said Spark.  
  
I smiled. Then I thought of Tailz.  
  
'Do you think it'll be alright?' I asked.  
  
'It will be,' said Allin.  
  
'It shouldn't have gone into battle,' I said. 'I should have stopped it.'  
  
'You tried,' said Allin. 'You couldn't have done anything.'  
  
'Your vulpix has recovered,' said Joy, walking into the room.  
  
'Thank you!' I said, relieved.  
  
'But it's very weak,' said Nurse Joy. 'It only has one tail, and vulpixes aren't very strong until they have all six tails. You shouldn't have let it battle so much.'  
  
'But, I--' I started.  
  
'She couldn't help it,' said Allin. 'Tailz walked into the battle. Janet didn't tell it to. Then it wouldn't come back.'  
  
'Alright,' said Joy. She turned around and lifted Tailz up. She handed it to me. I took it and hugged it.  
  
'I'm so glad you're OK,' I said.  
  
'Vulpix,' said Tailz. It licked me on the face.  
  
'Thanks again, Spark,' I said.  
  
'We'd better get going,' said Allin. I nodded, and we left the PokÃ©Centre. We walked through the large town, talking about our pokÃ©mon. Suddenly, I felt someone tap me on the back. I turned around, startled.  
  
'Luke!' I exclaimed.  
  
'The one and only,' Luke smiled.  
  
'Well I'm not sure about that,' said Sand-Cloud. 'I'm sure there are plenty of other Lukes out there.'  
  
Luke rolled his eyes. Then he spotted Allin.  
  
'Oh,' said Luke. 'Hello, I didn't notice you. I'm Luke. And you are...'  
  
'Allin,' replied Allin.  
  
'Spark!' said Spark. Luke looked startled.  
  
'What the!?' he exclaimed. 'What IS that?'  
  
Luke pulled out his pokÃ©dex.  
  
'Zapdos,' it read, 'a flying electric pokÃ©mon, this legendary bird pokÃ©mon is said to appear when the sky turns dark and lightning showers down.'  
  
'Wow,' said Luke. 'You have a ZAPDOS!?'  
  
'Yeah,' said Allin. 'Spark, say "hello" to Luke.'  
  
'Hello to Luke!' said Spark. Luke was shocked. Allin then explained the story behind Spark to him. After Luke finally understood everything, we realised it was getting late, so we went back to the PokÃ©Centre to sleep.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Three, Chapter Five  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Allin, Spark the zapdos, Josh the bug catcher, Tailz the vulpix, Potow the pidgey, Chazz the charmander  
  
The next day we got up and got ready to leave the town.  
  
'So, where are we going now?' Gelby asked.  
  
'Well,' I said. 'I think I'll go to Thunder Town and try for that electric badge. Hey Luke, you should head on to Botanical City.'  
  
'I should,' said Luke, looking disappointed. 'But I didn't think I'd leave you guys so soon.'  
  
I sighed, 'Well, we could meet back here, I suppose.'  
  
'Yeah,' said Luke. 'We'll do that. How long? Two days?'  
  
'Yeah, alright,' I said. 'What about you, Allin? Where are you going?'  
  
'I'll go with you, Luke, if you don't mind,' said Allin. 'I don't have the grass badge yet.'  
  
'OK, see ya,' I said. We waved to Luke and Allin, and started walking to Thunder Town.  
  
'Do you really think it'll take two days?' Gelby asked. 'Thunder Town isn't very far.'  
  
'I don't know,' I said. 'It could.'  
  
'Of course it won't take US two days,' said Sand-Cloud. 'But it'll definitely take LUKE two days!'  
  
Gelby laughed.  
  
'Don't be so mean, Sand-Cloud,' I said, although I was smiling.  
  
'Well, hello there!' said a voice. I turned around and saw Josh.  
  
'Hi Josh,' said Sand-Cloud.  
  
'I was wondering when I'd see you guys again,' said Josh.  
  
'We're going to Thunder Town to get a badge,' I said.  
  
'Good luck,' said Josh. 'Hey, what about a battle?'  
  
'Alright,' I nodded.  
  
'Kakuna! I choose you!' Josh threw a pokÃ©ball.  
  
'I choose you, Tailz!' I said, motioning to my vulpix.  
  
'Vulpix!' said Tailz. It backed away.  
  
'Not again,' I sighed. 'OK then. I choose you, Potow!'  
  
I threw a pokÃ©ball. Potow appeared.  
  
'Kakuna! Harden!' said Josh.  
  
'Potow! Quick attack!' I said. Potow attacked.  
  
'Kakuna! Harden!' said Josh.  
  
'Potow! Gust!' I said.  
  
'Kakuna! Harden!' said Josh. Each time Kakuna hardened itself, Potow's attacks did less damage. But I kept at it, and Kakuna started getting weak.  
  
'Kakuna return!' called Josh. 'Go, Caterpie! Caterpie, tackle attack!'  
  
'Potow, quick attack!' I said. But Potow had gotten weak from fighting Kakuna. 'Potow return! I choose... Chazz! Chazz, ember!'  
  
'Caterpie tackle!' said Josh.  
  
'Chazz! Scratch!' I said. Caterpie fell over.  
  
'Caterpie return!' said Josh. He turned to me. 'You win.'  
  
'That's it?' I asked. 'No more?'  
  
'Well I do have some more,' said Josh. 'But I only wanted to fight so Kakuna would evolve.'  
  
Josh threw his pokÃ©ball and looked at his Kakuna. Its shell was cracking open. Soon, it fell apart and a beedrill flew out.  
  
'Alright!' shouted Josh. 'I finally got a beedrill!'  
  
'I've got bad memories of those things,' said Gelby, remembering the time we had been attacked by beedrills in the Forest Maze.  
  
'But beedrills are powerful pokÃ©mon,' said Josh.  
  
'We know,' I said. The others nodded.  
  
'Hey Janet,' said Sand-Cloud. 'You could get Weedie to evolve into that!'  
  
She pointed at the beedrill.  
  
'I should,' I said. 'But right now, I want that electric badge!'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
Part Three, Chapter Six  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Nurse Joy, Raus the ivysaur, Catafree the caterpie  
  
We kept walking down the path to Thunder Town. It wasn't long before we reached the town and got our pokÃ©mon healed at the PokÃ©Centre.  
  
'So,' I said to Nurse Joy, 'what's the gym like here?'  
  
'The gym?' asked Nurse Joy. 'Oh no, you didn't come all this way just to go to the gym, did you?'  
  
'Well, yes...' I said, a bit confused.  
  
'I hate to disappoint you, but the Thunder Town gym has been moved to Shockwave City,' said Nurse Joy. 'I'm sorry, but it's quite a long way away.'  
  
'Oh no,' I said. 'I was really looking forward to that badge!'  
  
'Well, while you're here, you should visit the PokÃ©mon Breeder's Centre,' said Nurse Joy. 'They have some excellent pokÃ©mon there and you can even buy some!'  
  
'Sounds great!' said Sand-Cloud. We left the PokÃ©Centre and found our way to the Breeder's Centre. It was a large building and inside were people and pokÃ©mon everywhere.  
  
'Hello,' said a teenage trainer, coming up to us. 'My name's Damien. I'm a pokÃ©mon breeder.'  
  
'Hi,' I said. 'I'm Janet, and this is Sand-Cloud and Gelby.'  
  
'Are you interested in buying some pokÃ©mon?' Damien asked.  
  
'Well, maybe,' I said. 'What pokÃ©mon do you have?'  
  
'I breed water pokÃ©mon,' said Damien. 'Would you like to come and see the poliwag I have for sale?'  
  
'Alright,' I replied. I followed Damien to a room containing lots of water pools. He showed me a small pool with a poliwag swimming in it.  
  
'This is my last poliwag,' said Damien. 'It comes from champion parents.'  
  
'Is it good at battling?' I asked. 'I mean, some people breed pokÃ©mon just for pokÃ©mon shows, not for pokÃ©mon battles.'  
  
'Well, it currently hasn't done much battling,' Damien admitted. 'But its parents are excellent battlers. Tell you what, I'll show you. I'll give you a pokÃ©mon battle using its parents.'  
  
'Alright,' I said. 'Sounds good.'  
  
'Poliwhip!' Damien called. 'I choose you for this battle!'  
  
An adult poliwrath emerged from a nearby pool.  
  
'Raus! I choose you!' I threw my pokÃ©ball.  
  
'Poliwhip! Water gun!' said Damien. His poliwrath sprayed water on Raus.  
  
'Ivysaur!' said Raus.  
  
'Raus, vine whip!' I said. Raus sent out his vines and whipped Poliwhip.  
  
'Poliwhip! Hypnosis!' said Damien. I groaned, watching Raus fall asleep.  
  
'Raus, return!' I called. 'Go Catafree!'  
  
'Poliwhip, bubble!' said Damien. The Poliwrath sent out lots of bubbles, which hit Catafree.  
  
'Catafree, tackle!' I said. Catafree tackled the Poliwrath.  
  
'Poliwhip, water gun!' said Damien. Catafree was getting weak.  
  
'Catafree return!' I called. 'Alright, you've convinced me. I'll buy the poliwag.'  
  
'A good choice,' said Damien. 'Politwirl!'  
  
The young poliwag in the pool looked up.  
  
'Politwirl, you're going to a new trainer,' said Damien. The poliwag nodded. It didn't seem to mind. Damien took out a pokÃ©ball and Politwirl went inside it. I gave the money to Damien and he handed over the pokÃ©ball. It disappeared in my hand.  
  
'Oh, that's right,' I said. 'I'm already carrying six. I've got to get used to that!'  
  
I turned back to Damien.  
  
'You breed pokÃ©mon, right?' I asked. Damien nodded. 'Do you have any other pokÃ©mon for sale?'  
  
'Only one,' said Damien. 'A horsea called Seadorse. Would you like it?'  
  
'Yeah,' I said. I bought the horsea and we left the Breeder's Centre.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Three, Chapter Seven  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Nurse Joy, Raus the ivysaur, Catafree the caterpie  
  
'So, now what?' Sand-Cloud asked. 'Should we head back to meet Luke?'  
  
'Nah,' I said. 'We've got a few days, we might as well stay here tonight.'  
  
'Good idea,' said Sand-Cloud. 'I'm tired from all this walking.'  
  
We walked back to the PokÃ©Centre and I got my pokÃ©mon healed.  
  
'Your caterpie's about to evolve,' said Nurse Joy.  
  
'Really?' I said. I threw my pokÃ©ball. Catafree emerged, and started hardening itself until it formed... Metapod!  
  
'Wow,' I said. 'Catafree, return!'  
  
We stayed at the PokÃ©Centre that night and the next day we started walking again.  
  
'We've still got a while before we have to meet Luke,' said Sand-Cloud. 'Why don't you try and catch some more pokÃ©mon?'  
  
'Not if I can help it,' said a voice. I turned around and saw Mitch.  
  
'Not you again,' sighed Gelby. 'Can't you just leave us alone?'  
  
'I will,' said Mitch. 'After I beat you in a battle. Go, Nidorino!'  
  
'I choose you, Raus!' I called. 'Raus, leech seed!'  
  
Raus sent out a seed, which planted itself on Nidorino's back.  
  
'Nidorino, horn attack!' Mitch called. After Nidorino attacked, the leech seed sucked health out of it and gave it to Raus.  
  
'Raus, vine whip!' I called. Raus whipped Nidorino with its vines.  
  
'Nidorino, tackle!' Mitch said. Nidorino launched itself at Raus. I gasped. Raus was getting weak.  
  
'Raus, return!' I called, holding out my pokÃ©ball.  
  
'Ivysaur!' Raus growled, dodging the beam from my pokÃ©ball. Mitch laughed.  
  
'You're such a pathetic trainer,' he said. 'Your ivysaur won't even listen to you! I'll show you a REAL ivysaur! Nidorino, return! Ivysaur! Go!'  
  
Mitch sent out his ivysaur.  
  
'Alright Raus,' I said. 'You can do this! Tackle!'  
  
'Ivysaur, vine whip!' Mitch smiled. I gasped as I watched Ivysaur smack its vines into Raus with amazing strength.  
  
'Ivysaur,' said Raus weakly.  
  
'Raus, return!' I called. Raus dodged my pokÃ©ball. 'Raus! You've got to come back! You're too weak!'  
  
Raus shook its head. It faced Mitch's ivysaur.  
  
'Ivysaur,' growled Raus.  
  
'Ivysaur,' growled Ivysaur.  
  
'Raus!' I called. 'Vine whip!'  
  
Raus nodded.  
  
'IVYSAUR!' it roared, sending out its vines. They smashed Ivysaur hard.  
  
'Ivy!' squealed Ivysaur. It ran over to Mitch. 'Saur! Ivysaur!'  
  
'Get back in the battle!' Mitch yelled.  
  
'Can't you see it doesn't want to?' I asked. 'Mitch, you don't even care about your pokÃ©mon. You only care about winning. If ivysaur doesn't want to battle, you shouldn't make it!'  
  
'Shut up,' said Mitch. 'Ivysaur, get back in the battle. Now!'  
  
Ivysaur hung its head and walked back into the battle.  
  
'Ivysaur?' Raus asked it.  
  
'Saur,' said Ivysaur. 'Ivysaur, ivy. Saur ivysaur!'  
  
'Ivysaur,' nodded Raus. It turned to me. 'Ivysaur! Saur!'  
  
'What?' I asked.  
  
'I think it's saying it doesn't want to battle Ivysaur,' said Gelby. 'It doesn't think it's fair to fight a pokÃ©mon which doesn't want to battle.'  
  
'I don't care what either of them want,' said Mitch. 'Ivysaur, return! I'm not going to bother fighting someone as pathetic as you, Janet.'  
  
Mitch turned to leave. Then he turned back to me.  
  
'Oh, and if you're looking for your little friend Luke,' said Mitch. 'He's waiting for you in Sunshine Town. But there's no point going to meet him - they've closed off the road.'  
  
Mitch laughed and walked away. I turned to Sand-Cloud.  
  
'Do you think he's serious?' I asked.  
  
'What, about Luke making it back already?' Sand-Cloud replied. 'I doubt it.'  
  
I rolled my eyes. 'No, about the road being closed off.'  
  
'I don't know,' said Sand-Cloud.  
  
'Well, there's only one way to find out,' said Gelby. I nodded, and we started hurrying to Sunshine Town.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Three, Chapter Eight  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Tailz the vulpix, Catafree the metapod  
  
We hadn't walked very far when we came across a big crowd of people. Curiously, we walked up to them.  
  
'What's going on?' I asked. A man turned around.  
  
'They've closed off the road!' he said. 'We can't get through to Sunshine Town!'  
  
'What!?' I exclaimed. I pushed my way to the front of the crowd. There was a man standing there trying to calm everyone down.  
  
'Look,' he was saying, 'it will only be temporarily closed. We're just fixing the road. Come back next week and it should be ready!'  
  
'Next week!?' I exclaimed.  
  
'Everyone, we really need you to leave,' said the man. 'You're distracting our workers! If you leave now we'll get the job done quicker!'  
  
Slowly, everyone started moving away. I stayed where I was.  
  
'Look, girl,' said the man. 'I can't let you through, alright. You'll have to come back next week.'  
  
'I can't wait that long!' I said. 'My friend's waiting for me right now in Sunshine Town!'  
  
The man sighed.  
  
'You can take a detour,' he said. He pulled a map out of his pocket and handed it to me.  
  
'If you head back to Thunder Town, you can go West to Teal City. If you go North from there you'll come to a forest. If you head North-East from the forest you'll get to Sunshine Town. Got it?'  
  
'Yeah,' I said. 'But how long will that take?'  
  
'Could be a few days,' said the man. 'But that's better than a week, right?'  
  
I nodded. 'Thanks a lot!'  
  
We turned and headed back to Thunder Town.  
  
'This was a complete waste of time,' I sighed. 'First the gym's been moved, then the road's been closed off and we have to take a detour. We're going to be so late getting back to Luke.'  
  
'Oh well,' said Sand-Cloud. 'I'm sure he can wait.'  
  
By the time we got back to Thunder Town, it was getting dark. We stayed at the PokÃ©Centre.  
  
'Great,' I sighed. 'We just wasted a whole day!'  
  
The next day we got up and started heading West. We walked along a boring-looking path. Suddenly, a bird pokÃ©mon swooped down in front of us.  
  
'Woah,' said Sand-Cloud. 'What is that?'  
  
I took out my pokÃ©dex.  
  
'Fearow,' it read. 'A flying pokÃ©mon, with its huge and magnificent wings, it can keep aloft without ever having to land for a rest.'  
  
'Wow,' I said. 'It'd be great to catch that!'  
  
'I see you like my fearow,' said a voice. I turned and saw a teenage trainer.  
  
'Is this your fearow?' I asked her.  
  
'Yeah,' she replied. 'My name's Kew. I'm a pokÃ©mon trainer.'  
  
'I'm Janet,' I said. 'And this is Sand-Cloud and Gelby.'  
  
'Vulpix!' said Tailz.  
  
'And Tailz,' I smiled.  
  
'You guys are pokÃ©mon trainers?' Kew asked. I nodded. 'How about a battle?'  
  
'Alright,' I said. I got out a pokÃ©ball. 'Catafree! I choose you!'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Three, Chapter Nine  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Kew, Tailz the vulpix, Catafree the metapod, Pikapi the pikachu, Raus the ivysaur, Chazz the charmander  
  
'Chern! I choose you!' said Kew. The fearow flew over to Catafree.  
  
'Janet!' said Sand-Cloud. 'Bugs are weak against birds!'  
  
I nodded. 'Catafree, return! Go, Pikapi!'  
  
'Chern! Peck!' said Kew. Her Fearow pecked Pikapi.  
  
'Pikapi, thundershock!' I called. Pikapi sent out an electric bolt. It worked well against Chern.  
  
'Chern! Disable!' Kew called. It didn't seem to have hurt Pikapi at all.  
  
'Pikapi! Thundershock!' I called. Pikapi tried to electrocute Chern.  
  
'Pi?' it said.  
  
'Huh? What's wrong?' I said, confused.  
  
'Your Pikachu's thundershock is disabled!' said Kew. 'Chern! Peck!'  
  
The fearow pecked Pikapi.  
  
'Pikapi, quick attack!' I called. Pikapi attacked.  
  
'Chern! Mirror move!' said Kew. I watched as Chern used quick attack on Pikapi.  
  
'Kachu!' Pikapi squealed. It was hurt.  
  
'Pikapi, return!' I called. 'Go, Raus!'  
  
'An ivysaur?' said Kew. 'This should be easy. Chern return! Zing, I choose you!'  
  
Kew threw a pokÃ©ball. A Charmander appeared.  
  
'Zing! Flamethrower!' Kew called.  
  
'CHAR!' shouted Zing. It breathed out a huge fire burst.  
  
'Ivysaur!' Raus growled.  
  
'Raus, vine whip!' I called. Raus's attacks didn't have much effect on Zing. 'Raus, return!'  
  
'Ivysaur!' growled Raus.  
  
'Raus,' I said. 'You have to come back! You can't beat a charmander!'  
  
'Ivysaur!' growled Raus. I sighed.  
  
'Raus is always too determined to win,' said Sand-Cloud.  
  
'I know,' I sighed. 'Raus... huh?'  
  
I watched Raus. It was sending out leaves. They swirled through the air, then hit Zing.  
  
'Razor Leaf?' I exclaimed. 'When did Raus learn that?'  
  
I took out my pokÃ©dex.  
  
'Razor Leaf,' it read. 'Ivysaur learns razor leaf not long before evolving into Venusaur.'  
  
'Venusaur!?' I exclaimed. 'Wow!'  
  
I turned my attention back to the battle. Raus's attack had done a lot of damage, considering it was a grass attack.  
  
'Zing, return!' Kew called. 'Go... Moogle!'  
  
Kew threw a pokÃ©ball and a gloom appeared.  
  
'Raus, return!' I called. 'Tailz, now's your chance!'  
  
'Vulpix,' said Tailz, shaking its head. I sighed.  
  
'Chazz! I choose you!' I threw my pokÃ©ball and my charmander appeared. 'Chazz, ember!'  
  
Chazz burnt Moogle. It was getting weak already.  
  
'Moogle return!' Kew called. She sighed. 'You're good, Janet. I've got some more pokÃ©mon, but I think I'll stop.'  
  
'You're good, too,' I said. 'If you hadn't called back Chern and Zing I wouldn't have stood a chance!'  
  
'Well, Chern and Zing are my best pokÃ©mon,' said Kew. 'Which means, of course, that your pokÃ©mon would have got a lot of experience from beating them. Take your metapod out!'  
  
'Why?' I asked.  
  
'You'll see,' said Kew. I shrugged and took out a pokÃ©ball.  
  
'Catafree, come out!' I called. I looked at my metapod. It looked like it was... evolving! I smiled as Catafree's shell split open and my new- look Catafree emerged. It spread its wings.  
  
'Butterfree!' I smiled. 'It evolved into Butterfree!'  
  
'Free! Free!' said Catafree. I smiled.  
  
'Thanks Kew,' I said. 'If it wasn't for your fearow it wouldn't have evolved!'  
  
'Glad to be of help,' said Kew. 'Well, I should be going.'  
  
'Bye,' I said. 'And thanks again!'  
  
'Free!' said Catafree.  
  
~Janet~  
  
Part Three, Chapter Ten  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Ace, Kat, Potow the pidgey, Chazz the charmander, Catafree the butterfree  
  
'We'd better hurry,' I said. 'Let's try and reach Teal City by night time.'  
  
We hurried down the path. By the time it started getting dark, we were getting close to Teal City.  
  
'There's the city!' said Sand-Cloud, pointing.  
  
'Oh, good,' I said. 'I'm getting really tired.'  
  
We hurried to the city and healed our pokÃ©mon at the PokÃ©Centre.  
  
The next day we started heading North. Soon we reached the forest the man had told us about.  
  
'Not another forest,' sighed Gelby.  
  
'I think this one's smaller than the last one,' I said. 'Or at least, I hope it is!'  
  
'What are YOU doing in this forest?' said a voice. I turned around and saw Ace and Kat.  
  
'Not you again!' Sand-Cloud sighed.  
  
'Where's your friend?' Kat asked.  
  
'Why do you care?' I said.  
  
'I don't,' said Kat. She laughed. 'How are those pathetic pokÃ©mon of yours? Go, Paras!'  
  
'Go, Abra!' said Ace.  
  
'Hang on,' I said. 'You can't both send out a pokÃ©mon! That's not fair!'  
  
'Life's not fair,' said Ace. 'You just have to live with it.'  
  
'Sand-Cloud,' I said. 'Can you battle as well? You can use my pokÃ©mon.'  
  
'Okay,' said Sand-Cloud. I handed her three pokÃ©balls. 'Go... Potow!'  
  
'Go, Chazz!' I said. 'Chazz, ember!'  
  
'Paras, scratch!'  
  
'Abra, confusion!'  
  
It was strange, having two of my pokÃ©mon out, even if Sand-Cloud was using one.  
  
'Paras, cut!'  
  
'Abra, confusion!'  
  
'Chazz, ember!'  
  
'Potow, quick attack!'  
  
Ace and Kat's pokÃ©mon were getting weak. But they weren't going to give up yet.  
  
'Abra, confusion!'  
  
'Paras, scratch!'  
  
'Potow, gust!'  
  
'Chazz, ember!'  
  
Finally, Paras and Abra fainted. Ace and Kat glared at us.  
  
'You win this time,' said Ace.  
  
'But we'll be back,' said Kat.  
  
'When are they going to realise that no matter how many times they come back, we'll always win?' said Gelby. I laughed. Sand-Cloud handed me my pokÃ©balls.  
  
'That was so fun!' she said. 'I wish I could battle more often!'  
  
'You can catch some of your own pokÃ©mon if you want,' I said. 'I'll give you some pokÃ©balls.'  
  
Sand-Cloud nodded. We kept walking, and soon a sandshrew appeared.  
  
'Sand-Cloud,' I said. 'Why don't you catch it? You can borrow one of my pokÃ©mon to weaken it.'  
  
'OK!' said Sand-Cloud.  
  
'Here,' I said, handing her Catafree's pokÃ©ball. Sand-Cloud threw it.  
  
'Catafree, tackle!' she said. Before the sandshrew knew what was happening, Catafree tackled it. It did a lot of damage. I gave a pokÃ©ball to Sand-Cloud.  
  
'PokÃ©ball go!' she said, throwing it. It hit the sandshrew. It was zapped inside. The pokÃ©ball shook. Soon, the light went out.  
  
'Yay!' said Sand-Cloud as she picked up the pokÃ©ball. 'I got my own pokÃ©mon!'  
  
Sand-Cloud named her sandshrew "Slash", and let it out of the pokÃ©ball. She decided to let it walk with us.  
  
'We'd better hurry,' I said. 'We're going to be so late!'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Three, Chapter Eleven  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Seadorse the horsea  
  
We ran as fast as we could through the forest, but soon it got dark and we had to stop for the night. I was starting to get worried. If we didn't make it out of the forest soon we wouldn't reach Luke in time.  
  
'Come on,' said Sand-Cloud the next morning. 'You want to get back to Luke don't you?'  
  
'Of course I do!' I said. We started hurrying. 'We're so late! What do you think he'll do?'  
  
'He'll still be waiting there,' said Sand-Cloud. 'He wouldn't just walk off and forget about you.'  
  
I gave her a strange look. 'What's that supposed to mean?'  
  
'Nothing,' said Sand-Cloud. I shrugged and we kept hurrying through the forest. I spotted a female nidoran, but decided not to waste any more time trying to catch it. Finally, happily, we reached the end of the forest. We puffed, tired from running for so long.  
  
'We've still got a while to go,' said Gelby. 'But I'm so tired!'  
  
'We haven't got too far to go,' I said. 'We can probably walk a bit slower. I mean, we're already heaps late. I don't think a few minutes is going to make much difference.'  
  
'Good idea,' said Sand-Cloud. We kept walking. Finally, we reached Sunshine Town and went straight to the PokÃ©Centre. As I healed my pokÃ©mon, I suddenly realised Luke was nowhere in sight.  
  
'Oh no!' I said. 'Luke's left already!'  
  
I rushed out of the PokÃ©Centre and looked around frantically. Suddenly I saw two figures walking away from the city. I ran over to them. I tapped one on the back and he turned around.  
  
'Janet!' he exclaimed. 'Where on earth have you been? We've been waiting there for so long! We thought you weren't coming!'  
  
'Sorry Luke,' I said. 'They closed off the road and we had to make a detour.'  
  
Luke sighed. 'Hey, I got the grass badge! How'd you go with the electric badge?'  
  
'They moved the gym,' I sighed. 'I couldn't get it.'  
  
'How stupid!' said Luke.  
  
'I know,' I said. 'Anyway, come back to the PokÃ©Centre. I need to give you something.'  
  
'Give me something?' said Luke. 'Oooh, cool!'  
  
Luke and Allin followed me back to the PokÃ©Centre. I walked over to the PC and withdrew Seadorse the horsea.  
  
'Here,' I said, handing the pokÃ©ball to Luke.  
  
'Huh?' said Luke. 'What's this?'  
  
'It's a pokÃ©ball you idiot,' I said. 'I kind of realised that I hadn't paid you back for those pokÃ©balls you bought me. So I bought you this.'  
  
'Janet, I don't mind about the pokÃ©balls,' said Luke. 'You don't need to pay me back.'  
  
'I don't care if I NEED to,' I said. 'I'm doing it anyway. Take it.'  
  
Luke sighed and took the pokÃ©ball.  
  
'Thanks Janet,' he smiled. 'You're a great friend.'  
  
'Well go on, throw it!' I said.  
  
'Throw it?' said Luke. 'Why?'  
  
'Luke, you're a pokÃ©mon trainer with two badges,' I said. 'Please don't tell me you don't know how to get a pokÃ©mon out.'  
  
'PokÃ©mon?' Luke murmured. He threw the pokÃ©ball. Seadorse appeared. 'Janet, I thought it was empty! I wouldn't have accepted it if I knew there was a pokÃ©mon inside!'  
  
'It's too late,' I smiled. Luke sighed.  
  
'Thanks heaps,' said Luke. 'I like it. What's it called?'  
  
'Seadorse,' I replied.  
  
'Seadorse, return!' Luke called. Seadorse was pulled back into the pokÃ©ball.  
  
'Well if you're all finally ready now...' said Allin. 'We can actually get going!'  
  
We laughed and left the PokÃ©Centre.  
  
~Janet~  
  
END OF PART THREE 


	6. Part Four

Part Four, Chapter One  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Allin, Tailz the vulpix, Catafree the butterfree  
  
We'd walked a long way and a few weeks had passed. Luke and Allin had been trying to help me find Shockwave City, but we'd had no luck. One day, we hadn't been walking for long when we saw a familiar trainer.  
  
'Not you again!' said Mitch.  
  
'You!' said Allin. 'You were the one that nearly killed that poor vulpix!'  
  
'Vulpix!' Tailz growled.  
  
'Well, this time I'll beat it again!' laughed Mitch. 'Go, Ivysaur!'  
  
'Vulpix!' Tailz growled.  
  
'Go...' I started.  
  
'Vulpix!' Tailz barked, stepping in front of me.  
  
'OK,' I said. 'Go, Tailz!'  
  
'Ha!' laughed Mitch. 'That pathetic thing!?'  
  
'Vuuulpix!' growled Tailz.  
  
'Tailz,' I said. 'Confuse ray!'  
  
'Ivysaur, leech seed!' said Mitch. But Ivysaur was too confused to battle. Instead, it hurt itself. 'You stupid thing! I said LEECH SEED!'  
  
'Ivysaur?' said Ivysaur. It was still confused.  
  
'Damn it, you stupid pokÃ©mon!' said Mitch. 'Ivysaur, return! Go, Mankey!'  
  
'Tailz, quick attack!' I called.  
  
'Mankey, karate chop!'  
  
The move did a lot of damage to Tailz.  
  
'Vulpix!' it yelped.  
  
'Tailz, come back!' I called. 'Go, Catafree!'  
  
'Mankey, focus energy!' Mitch called.  
  
'Catafree! Confusion!' I smiled. Mitch's mankey couldn't handle the psychic move. It fainted.  
  
'This sucks!' Mitch said angrily. 'I don't want to fight your stupid pokÃ©mon!'  
  
'Then you can fight me,' said Allin. Mitch nodded.  
  
'Fine then,' he said. 'Go, Oddish!'  
  
'Go, Megavolt!' called Allin. He threw a pokÃ©ball and a voltorb appeared. 'Megavolt, sonic boom!'  
  
'Oddish, absorb!'  
  
'Megavolt, tackle!'  
  
Allin's voltorb was a lot stronger than Oddish.  
  
'Oddish, return!' Mitch called. 'Go, Graveler!'  
  
'Graveler...' sighed Luke, remembering the graveler he had traded away.  
  
'Megavolt, return!' Allin called. 'Go, Leviathon!'  
  
We all gasped as Allin threw a pokÃ©ball and a huge gyarados came out.  
  
'Leviathon, hydro pump!' said Allin. The graveler nearly fainted in one hit!  
  
'Graveler, rock throw!' said Mitch. It did a lot of damage, but not enough.  
  
'Leviathon, hydro pump!' said Allin. This time, the graveler fainted.  
  
'Graveler, return!' called Mitch. 'Go, Onix!'  
  
We all had to step back as Mitch sent out a pokÃ©mon which was even bigger than Allin's gyarados. The two huge pokÃ©mon made eye contact and began circling each other.  
  
'Leviathon, hydro pump!' said Allin. His gyarados spurted out a huge amount of water, drenching the onix. The huge rock snake fell over - it was unable to cope with such a powerful water attack.  
  
'Onix return!' said Mitch angrily. 'Go, Staryu!'  
  
'Leviathon, bite!' said Allin.  
  
'Staryu, hypnosis!'  
  
The gyarados closed its eyes and fell to the ground with a huge slam.  
  
'Leviathon return!' called Allin. 'Go, Bonehead!'  
  
Allin threw a pokÃ©ball, and his cubone appeared.  
  
'Cubone bone!' it said.  
  
'Staryu, hypnosis!' Mitch said quickly.  
  
'Damn,' said Allin. 'Return, Bonehead! Go, Sinew!'  
  
'Staryu, hypnosis!' Mitch repeated. Allin sighed and called back his dratini.  
  
'Primal!' he said, throwing a pokÃ©ball and making his primeape appear. 'Your turn!'  
  
'Hypnosis!' Mitch laughed. Allin gritted his teeth and held out his pokÃ©ball, bringing his primeape back to him.  
  
'Fine,' he said. 'But you leave me no choice. I choose you! SPARK!'  
  
~Janet~  
  
Part Four, Chapter Two  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Mitch Orien, Allin, Spark the zapdos  
  
'I choose you! SPARK!' Allin pointed at Mitch's staryu. Spark nodded and flew into battle.  
  
'What is that thing!?' Mitch exclaimed.  
  
'Spark is zapdos!' said Spark. Mitch looked startled.  
  
'Spark! Thundershock!' said Allin. Spark sent out a huge electric shock which made Staryu faint straight away.  
  
'What!?' Mitch exclaimed.  
  
'Wow!' I said. 'I thought Spark was only young!'  
  
'He is,' said Allin. 'But zapdoses are so powerful that even at a low level they're great fighters!'  
  
'Staryu, return!' Mitch called.  
  
'You lose!' laughed Spark.  
  
'Shut up!' said Mitch.  
  
'Loser!' said Spark. Mitch got ready to kick Spark angrily.  
  
'I wouldn't if I were you,' warned Allin. Mitch ignored him and kicked Spark.  
  
'ZAPDOS!' Spark shouted angrily. He let out a huge thundershock. Mitch fell to the ground in pain.  
  
'Owwww.....' he moaned as he pulled himself up.  
  
'Next time think twice before getting a zapdos angry,' said Allin.  
  
'Yeah!' said Spark. Mitch just glared at us and walked away.  
  
'No wonder he's your rival,' said Allin. 'He's such a moron!'  
  
'He's not all that bad,' said Luke. I rolled my eyes.  
  
We kept walking. Soon, we came to a sign, and a fork in the road. One path led to Blastoise Centre (where I had won my water badge), and the other led to a place called Cloud City.  
  
'Blastoise Centre,' I said. 'That's where I got the water badge. Don't you need that, Luke?'  
  
'Yeah,' said Luke. 'Maybe I should try and get it.'  
  
'What about you Allin?' I asked.  
  
'Actually, I think I'll go back the way we came,' replied Allin. 'There was a turn-off to Rock Town - I think I'll head there.'  
  
'OK, well I'm going to check out Cloud City,' I said. 'It sounds interesting.'  
  
'Well, bye then,' said Luke.  
  
'Bye,' I waved to both of my friends. They each turned separate ways.  
  
'Come on,' said Sand-Cloud. We started walking down one of the paths. It wasn't long before we reached Cloud City. I went to the PokÃ©Centre and healed my pokÃ©mon.  
  
'There's a gym in this city,' said Nurse Joy. 'The leader is called Aaron and he uses flying pokÃ©mon.'  
  
'Flying...' I said. 'Hmmm, what's good against flying?'  
  
'Electric, ice and rock,' said Nurse Joy.  
  
'Well, I don't have any ice or rock pokÃ©mon,' I said. 'But I do have a pikachu. I can use it!'  
  
'I must warn you...' said Nurse Joy. 'Aaron's pokÃ©mon are quite powerful. Most people only manage to beat him with at least three or four badges already.'  
  
'Pikapi's strong,' I said. 'I'm sure it will manage.'  
  
'Well, good luck,' said Nurse Joy. I decided to stay at the PokÃ©Centre for the night, and the next day I went to find the gym. Once I had found the building, I stepped inside.  
  
'A new challenger?' said Aaron.  
  
'Yes,' I said.  
  
'You'd better be ready to lose!' said Aaron. 'Because you won't win!'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Four, Chapter Three  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Chazz the charmander, Catafree the butterfree, Bybee the rattata, Pikapi the pikachu, Tailz the vulpix, Aaron the pokÃ©mon leader of flying  
  
'Chazz! I choose you!' I said, throwing a pokÃ©ball.  
  
'I choose Pidgeotto!' said Aaron. 'Gust attack, Pidgeotto!'  
  
Pidgeotto used its wings to push air and dirt at Chazz.  
  
'Chazz! Ember!' I said.  
  
'Char!' said Chazz. It burnt Pidgeotto!  
  
'Pidgeotto! Quick attack!'  
  
Pidgeotto attacked Chazz, but hurt itself from the burn.  
  
'Chazz! Ember!' I said. Chazz used a really powerful flame that made Pidgeotto nearly faint.  
  
'Pidgeotto, return!' called Aaron. 'Go - Fearow!'  
  
'Chazz! Ember!' I said. It didn't do much against Fearow.  
  
'Fearow! Peck!' said Aaron. His fearow pecked Chazz hard. It was getting weak.  
  
'Chazz, return!' I called. 'Go, Catafree!'  
  
'Fearow, peck!' said Aaron.  
  
'Catafree, sleep powder!' I grinned as Fearow closed its eyes and dropped to the ground, asleep.  
  
'Fearow return!' said Aaron. 'Go.. Zubat!'  
  
'Zubat!?' I exclaimed. That didn't seem right.  
  
'It's a FLYING gym, not a bird gym,' said Aaron. 'Zubat, bite!'  
  
Zubat bit Catafree.  
  
'Free!' said Catafree.  
  
'Catafree! Confusion!' I said. The zubat dropped to the ground instantly. I was shocked.  
  
'Psychic is good against poison,' Sand-Cloud reminded me.  
  
'Zubat return!' called Aaron angrily. 'Go! Pidgeot!'  
  
I gasped. This was going to be hard.  
  
'Pidgeot! Wing attack!' said Aaron. I gasped as Catafree fainted.  
  
'Catafree return!' I called. 'Go! Bybee!'  
  
'Pidgeot! Wing attack!' said Aaron. His pidgeot was so strong, my rattata nearly fainted!  
  
'Bybee, return!' I called. 'Go... Pikapi! Thundershock!'  
  
'Pikachu!' said Pikapi, zapping Pidgeot with electricity. It did a lot of damage.  
  
'Pidgeot! Gust!'  
  
'Pikapi! Thundershock!'  
  
'Pidgeot! Sand-attack!'  
  
'Pikapi, thundershock!'  
  
Pikapi's attack missed. I sighed.  
  
'Pidgeot, wing attack!'  
  
'Pikapi! Thundershock!'  
  
I smiled happily as the Pidgeot fell to the ground.  
  
'Pidgeot, return!' called Aaron. He turned to me. 'That pikachu is very strong. You win. Take the Flying badge.'  
  
I took the badge from his hand.  
  
'Thank you!' I said as I left the gym. I healed my pokÃ©mon at the PokÃ©Centre. When I got them back, I noticed that Chazz's pokÃ©ball was shaking! I opened it curiously.  
  
The flame on Chazz's tail was glowing more brightly than ever. And Chazz seemed to be getting darker in colour. I realised what was happening.  
  
'Chazz is evolving!' I exclaimed. Within a few seconds, my charmander had turned into.. Charmeleon!  
  
'Char!' said Chazz. 'Char! Meleon! Char!'  
  
I smiled. 'Good work Chazz - you fought well back there!'  
  
'Vulpix!' Tailz agreed. I laughed and decided to let Chazz stay out of the pokÃ©ball for a while.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Four, Chapter Four  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Tailz the vulpix, Chazz the charmeleon  
  
We left Cloud City and began walking down a grassy path. We hoped to find Shockwave City soon, but still had no idea where it was. After a few minutes of walking, I heard the sound of hooves and turned around. A trainer I recognised was riding on a Rapidash.  
  
'Hi, Simone!' I said.  
  
'Oh, hi Janet!' said Simone. 'I haven't seen you for a while!'  
  
'Did your ponyta get back OK?' I asked.  
  
'Oh, yeah,' said Simone. 'Thanks.'  
  
There was a pause.  
  
'So, where's Luke?' Simone asked.  
  
'I don't know, I think he went to Blastoise Centre to get a badge,' I said.  
  
'Why isn't he with you, though?' Simone asked.  
  
'Um, he doesn't always travel with us,' I said.  
  
'Oh,' said Simone. She was silent for a moment, then she suddenly exclaimed, 'Hey! You've got a vulpix!'  
  
She got off her Rapidash and bent down to look at Tailz.  
  
'Oh, it's so cute! I wish I had a vulpix!' she said. 'Janet.. why does it only have one tail?'  
  
'It's really young,' I said. 'It hasn't had much experience.'  
  
'Well, it's still cute,' said Simon. 'How's your charmander?'  
  
'Have a look,' I smiled, throwing a pokÃ©ball. My charmeleon appeared.  
  
'Charmeleon!' said Simone. 'Whoops, sorry!'  
  
I laughed. 'What about your pokÃ©mon? How are they coming along?'  
  
'Great!' said Simone. 'That golem I got from Luke is sooo cool!'  
  
'Don't tell him that,' I smiled.  
  
'How's he coping with Psyduck?' Simone asked.  
  
'Alright, I guess,' I said. 'I don't think I've really seen him use it.'  
  
'I feel really guilty about that trade,' said Simone. 'Golem is way better than Psyduck..'  
  
'I don't think he minds,' I lied.  
  
'Oh, good,' said Simone. Suddenly we heard footsteps. I turned around and saw Mitch. I groaned.  
  
'Go away, Mitch,' I said.  
  
'Hang on, let's have a battle first!' said Mitch.  
  
'I don't want to fight you, Mitch,' I said.  
  
'I'll fight you!' said Simone.  
  
'Go, Oddish!' said Mitch. Simone laughed.  
  
'Good luck,' she smiled. 'Go, Charizard!'  
  
Mitch gulped. 'Uh.. Oddish, absorb?'  
  
Oddish absorbed some of Charizard's energy, but didn't do much damage.  
  
'Charizard, flamethrower!' said Simone.  
  
'Char!' roared Charizard, breathing fire on Oddish. The grass pokÃ©mon fainted!  
  
'Oddish return!' called Mitch. 'Go Staryu!'  
  
'Charizard return!' called Simone. 'Go Arcanine!'  
  
'Staryu, water gun!' said Mitch. It did a lot of damage.  
  
'Arcanine, bite!' said Simone. Her arcanine was really powerful!  
  
'Staryu, water gun!' said Mitch. Although it was strong, Arcanine couldn't handle the water attack. It fainted.  
  
'Arcanine, return!' called Simone. 'Go, Ponyta!'  
  
I recognised the ponyta as the one we'd borrowed not long ago.  
  
'Staryu, water gun!'  
  
'Ponyta, stomp!'  
  
Ponyta crushed Staryu with its hooves.  
  
'Staryu return! Go, Onix!'  
  
'Oh oh,' said Simone. She sighed. 'Ponyta, ember!'  
  
Ponyta hardly did any damage to Onix.  
  
'Onix, earthquake!'  
  
Onix slammed onto the ground. The earth shook, and we nearly fell over. Ponyta fainted.  
  
'Ponyta return! Go Dragonair!'  
  
'Onix, slam!'  
  
'Dragonair, ice beam!'  
  
The huge onix fainted. Mitch glared at Simone and got out his next pokÃ©ball.  
  
~Janet~  
  
Part Four, Chapter Five  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Simone, Mitch Orien, Tailz the vulpix, Catafree the butterfree  
  
'Go, Cloyster!' said Mitch. 'Cloyster, aurora beam!'  
  
Dragonair was hurt badly.  
  
'Dragonair! Slam!'  
  
'Cloyster, aurora beam!'  
  
Dragonair fainted!  
  
'Return, Dragonair!' said Simone. 'Go, Golem!'  
  
'Cloyster, aurora beam!'  
  
'Golem, rock throw!'  
  
Cloyster fell to the ground, badly injured. Mitch gritted his teeth.  
  
'Cloyster, return!' he called. 'Go Ivysaur!'  
  
'Golem, tackle!'  
  
'Ivysaur, vine whip!'  
  
I gasped as Ivysaur hit Golem strongly with its vines. The super effective move made Golem faint!  
  
'Golem return!' called Simone. 'Go, Rapidash!'  
  
Simone's rapidash trotted over to Ivysaur.  
  
'Rapidash, fire spin!' said Simone. Rapidash wrapped Ivysaur in flames, not letting go and doing a lot of damage.  
  
'Ivysaur, return!' called Mitch. 'Go Jigglypuff! Jigglypuff, sing!'  
  
As Jigglypuff sang, Rapidash closed its eyes and went to sleep.  
  
'Vuuul...' yawned Tailz. I looked at it. It lay down on the ground and slept.  
  
'Not you, Tailz!' I said. But it was fast asleep. I sighed and picked it up.  
  
'Rapidash return!' called Simone. 'Go Charizard!'  
  
'That thing again?' said Mitch.  
  
'Charizard, flamethrower!'  
  
'Jigglypuff, pound!'  
  
'Charizard, slash!'  
  
Charizard was too strong for Jigglypuff. The small pokÃ©mon fainted.  
  
'Fine,' said Mitch. 'You win.'  
  
Simone smiled. 'Charizard, return! Come on guys, let's get out of here.'  
  
'Aren't you going to ride Rapidash?' I asked.  
  
'It's asleep, remember!' said Simone with a laugh.  
  
'Oh, right,' I said, smiling.  
  
'Let's find a PokÃ©Centre,' said Simone. 'Or you're going to have to carry your vulpix for a long time!'  
  
'I could put it in a pokÃ©ball,' I said. 'But it wouldn't be too happy when it woke up!'  
  
'Rapidash probably won't either,' said Simone. 'It's gotten used to walking. But it's not as if I can carry it!'  
  
I laughed. 'Come on, then.'  
  
We started walking but couldn't find a PokÃ©Centre anywhere. After a while of walking, I saw a two-headed bird pokÃ©mon on the side of the road.  
  
'What's that?' I said, taking out my pokÃ©dex.  
  
'Doduo,' it read. 'A flying pokÃ©mon , it makes up for its poor flying with fast foot speed. It leaves giant footprints.'  
  
'I'll catch it!' I said. 'Go, Catafree!'  
  
My butterfree came out of its pokÃ©ball.  
  
'Catafree, sleep powder!' I said. As it sprayed its powder over Doduo, the bird pokÃ©mon fell asleep.  
  
'PokÃ©ball, go!' I said, throwing a pokÃ©ball. Because Doduo was asleep, it couldn't break out of the pokÃ©ball. 'Yeah - I got Doduo!'  
  
I named my new pokÃ©mon "Dotwin" and it got transferred to PC.  
  
'I think there's a PokÃ©Centre up ahead!' said Simone.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Four, Chapter Six  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Simone, Tailz the vulpix  
  
We made it to the PokÃ©Centre and healed our pokÃ©mon. Tailz was happy to be awake again (and I was happy to not have to carry it anymore)!  
  
Simone threw her pokÃ©ball and Rapidash came out. Simone climbed onto its back.  
  
'I'd better be going,' she said.  
  
'Bye Simone!' said Sand-Cloud, Gelby and I at the same time.  
  
'Bye!' said Simone.  
  
'Vulpix!' said Tailz. Simone laughed and started to ride away.  
  
'Where should we go now?' Sand-Cloud asked.  
  
'I don't know,' I shrugged. 'I'm still looking for Shockwave City, remember? Maybe we should try and find it.'  
  
'Good idea,' said Sand-Cloud.  
  
'It would help if we at least had some idea of where it is,' Gelby pointed out. I sighed.  
  
'Maybe we should ask someone,' I said. I looked around and spotted a trainer walking out of the PokÃ©Centre. I walked over to him.  
  
'Hi,' I said. 'I'm Janet, and this is Gelby and Sand-Cloud.'  
  
'I'm Franklyn,' said the trainer.  
  
'Uh, would you happen to know where Shockwave City is?' I asked. 'I'm trying to get the electric badge.'  
  
'The electric badge?' Franklyn asked. 'Isn't that in Thunder Town?'  
  
'No,' I said. 'The gym was moved.'  
  
'If only you'd told me that yesterday,' said Franklyn. 'I just told a trainer this morning to go there to get his electric badge!'  
  
I laughed. 'I went there a few weeks ago and they told me it had been moved. It was so annoying - I had to walk all the way back to where I was before..'  
  
'Not only that,' said Sand-Cloud. 'But they closed off the road, so we had to take a detour.'  
  
Franklyn smiled. 'Well I think your luck is getting better. I know the way to Shockwave City - I'll lead you there.'  
  
'Thanks!' I said.  
  
'I just hope we don't run into my rival along the way,' said Franklyn. 'He's so annoying, that guy!'  
  
'My rival's probably worse,' I said. 'He hates me so much it's not funny.'  
  
'And he thinks he's so good,' said Sand-Cloud. 'Then he loses and he still thinks he's the best. It's so annoying.'  
  
Franklyn laughed. 'Just like my rival. I think they must all act the same.'  
  
'Yeah,' I said. 'But then--'  
  
I stopped as I realised with a shock that Mitch himself was just a few metres away from us. Franklyn looked over at him.  
  
'I don't believe it,' he said. 'There he is. My rival.'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Four, Chapter Seven  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Franklyn, Mitch Orien, Tailz the vulpix, Chazz the charmeleon, Pikapi the pikachu  
  
'You must be joking!' I said. 'Mitch is your rival!?'  
  
'Yeah,' said Franklyn. 'Why, is he your friend or something?'  
  
'Just the opposite,' I said. 'He's my rival.'  
  
Franklyn laughed. 'No wonder we thought our rivals were so similar!'  
  
Mitch heard our voices and turned around.  
  
'Janet?' said Mitch. 'Not you again! I just saw you a few hours ago!'  
  
'I feel sorry for you, Janet,' said Franklyn. 'Imagine having to see him twice in one day.'  
  
'Oh, you're so funny, Franklyn,' said Mitch sarcastically. 'Let's see how funny you think you are when I smash your pokÃ©mon!'  
  
'Yeah, right,' said Franklyn.  
  
'I'll fight you!' I said.  
  
'You didn't want to fight me earlier,' said Mitch.  
  
'I've changed my mind,' I said.  
  
'Fine, but I won't lose,' said Mitch. 'Go Ivysaur!'  
  
'Go, Tailz!' I said.  
  
'Vulpix!' Tailz barked, stepping forward. I smiled. Tailz was finally willing to battle.  
  
'Tailz, quick attack!'  
  
'Ivysaur, tackle!'  
  
Unfortunately, Tailz wasn't at a high enough level to know any fire moves, so it didn't have much of an advantage over Ivysaur. And Mitch's pokÃ©mon was really strong.  
  
'Tailz, return!' I called. 'Go, Chazz!'  
  
'Ivysaur, tackle!'  
  
'Chazz, ember!'  
  
'Ivysaur, growl!'  
  
'Chazz, ember!'  
  
Chazz's fire was too strong for the grass pokÃ©mon. It fainted.  
  
'Ivysaur, return! Go, Staryu!'  
  
'Chazz, scratch!'  
  
'Staryu, water gun!'  
  
The water move did a lot of damage to my charmeleon, but Chazz was strong.  
  
'Chazz, scratch!'  
  
'Staryu, water gun!'  
  
Chazz was getting weak.  
  
'Chazz, return!' I called. I thought about which pokÃ©mon to send out. I could send Raus, of course, but the thing with my ivysaur was that once it got into a battle, it never wanted to back out.  
  
'I'm waiting..' said Mitch. Suddenly I remembered my pikachu. I smiled.  
  
'Pikapi! I choose you!' I said, throwing a pokÃ©ball.  
  
'Staryu, tackle!' said Mitch. It didn't do much damage to my high level pokÃ©mon.  
  
'Pikapi, thundershock!' I called. Mitch's staryu fainted in one hit!  
  
'Staryu, return!' said Mitch. 'Try this for size! Go, Onix!'  
  
'Pikapi, thundershock!' I said.  
  
'PIKACHU!' shouted Pikapi as it let out a huge burst of electricity. It looked up at the huge onix. 'Pi?'  
  
Onix didn't seem to have been hurt at all! Mitch laughed.  
  
'What kind of pokÃ©mon trainer doesn't know that electricity can't hurt ground pokÃ©mon?' he laughed. 'Onix, earthquake!'  
  
'Chu!' cried Pikapi, collapsing on the ground.  
  
'Pikapi, return!' I called. Raus would have to be it now, whether it listened to me or not!  
  
~Janet~  
  
Part Four, Chapter Eight  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Franklyn, Mitch Orien, Raus the ivysaur  
  
'Raus! I choose you!' I said, throwing my pokÃ©ball.  
  
'Ivysaur!' said Raus.  
  
'Raus, razor leaf!' I said.  
  
'Razor leaf?' said Mitch. He seemed impressed. Then he looked at his onix. It had nearly fainted. 'Onix, return! Go, Cloyster!'  
  
'Raus, razor leaf!'  
  
'Cloyster, aurora beam!'  
  
Both moves were super effective against the other pokÃ©mon, so they each did a lot of damage.  
  
'Raus, razor leaf!'  
  
Raus was obviously stronger than Cloyster. Mitch's pokÃ©mon had nearly fainted.  
  
'Cloyster, return! Go Oddish!'  
  
'Raus, leech seed!'  
  
Raus sent out a seed which planted itself on Oddish's back.  
  
'Oddish, absorb!'  
  
Oddish tried to absorb energy from Raus, but it wasn't very effective. And when it stopped, Raus got the energy back again from the leech seed.  
  
'That's not fair!' Mitch objected. 'Oddish, return! Go Jigglypuff!'  
  
Mitch threw his pokÃ©ball and his jigglypuff appeared.  
  
'Raus, razor leaf!'  
  
'Jigglypuff, double slap!'  
  
'Raus, vine whip!'  
  
I was amazed at how strong my ivysaur was. It wasn't long before Jigglypuff fainted. Mitch gritted his teeth and called it back. I'd won!  
  
'Ivysaur!' said Raus. I looked at it and gasped, unable to believe what I saw. The plant on its back was growing again!  
  
'It's evolving already!?' I exclaimed. 'That's amazing!'  
  
I watched in awe as my ivysaur grew into a huge pokÃ©mon, the plant on its back growing into a giant flower. Raus had become a venusaur!  
  
'Wow!' I exclaimed.  
  
'Venusaur!' Raus roared. I smiled at it. I felt Gelby tap me on the shoulder. She pointed to Mitch. I looked at him. He was staring, amazed, at my venusaur. I smiled.  
  
'So Mitch, how come your ivysaur hasn't evolved yet?' I asked. 'I mean, since you're so much better than me.'  
  
'Shut up,' said Mitch. 'I bet I still have more pokÃ©mon than you. I've got thirty-nine. How many do you have?'  
  
Even though I knew I didn't have anywhere near as many as him, I went throw my pokÃ©mon.  
  
'Charmander, charmeleon, pidgey, pikachu, weedle, kakuna, rattata, caterpie, metapod, butterfree, bulbasaur, ivysaur, venusaur, diglett, nidoran, vulpix, poliwag, horsea, doduo,' I said. 'That makes nineteen.'  
  
Mitch laughed. 'See what I mean? I'm a better trainer than you anyway.'  
  
'It's not how many pokÃ©mon you have that makes you a good trainer,' said Gelby. 'It's how well you train them. And I think that battle proves that Janet trains better than you.'  
  
'Oh, what would you know?' said Mitch. Before we could answer, he walked away.  
  
'He is so annoying,' said Franklyn. 'Well come on, let's get to Shockwave City.'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Four, Chapter Nine  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Franklyn, Slash the sandshrew  
  
Before moving on, I healed my pokÃ©mon at the PokÃ©Centre. Then we started walking again.  
  
'How far is it to Shockwave City?' I asked.  
  
'Not too far,' replied Franklyn. 'But then, I haven't been there for a long time. I suppose the roads could have changed for something.'  
  
'I hope not,' said Sand-Cloud. 'Remember the last time we had to take a detour?'  
  
'Yeah,' I said. 'That was bad.'  
  
After a while, we came across a trainer I recognised. Our old friend Josh the bug catcher.  
  
'Hi Josh,' I said.  
  
'Hi Janet,' he replied. 'Did you get that electric badge?'  
  
'No,' I said. 'They moved the gym. I'm on my way there now.'  
  
'How annoying!' said Josh. 'Hey, how are your pokÃ©mon? I'll give you a battle.'  
  
'I'll battle you!' said Sand-Cloud.  
  
'You battle?' Josh asked.  
  
'Well, I haven't yet,' said Sand-Cloud. 'But I do have one pokÃ©mon!'  
  
'Alright then,' said Josh. 'Go, Venonat!'  
  
'Slash! I choose you!' said Sand-Cloud. She threw her pokÃ©ball and Slash appeared.  
  
'Venomoth, tackle!'  
  
'Slash, sand-attack!'  
  
'Venomoth, leech life!'  
  
'Slash, sand-attack!'  
  
Slash kicked sand into Venomoth's eyes, making it harder for the bug to attack.  
  
'Venonat, tackle!'  
  
Venonat's attacks were starting to miss Slash.  
  
'Slash, sand-attack!'  
  
'Venonat, tackle!'  
  
'Slash, sand-attack!'  
  
'Venonat, leech life!'  
  
'Slash, scratch it!' said Sand-Cloud. Now that Venonat's accuracy was so low, Slash could attack without putting itself in much danger. The bug pokÃ©mon started weakening.  
  
'Venonat, return!' Josh called. 'Go, Caterpie!'  
  
'Slash, scratch!' said Sand-Cloud. The small bug pokÃ©mon was weakened a lot by the move.  
  
'Caterpie, tackle!'  
  
'Slash, scratch!'  
  
'Caterpie, string shot!'  
  
'Slash, scratch!'  
  
Josh's pokÃ©mon was getting weak already.  
  
'Caterpie, return!' he called. He turned to Sand-Cloud. 'I won't send out another pokÃ©mon, seeing as you only have one. You win!'  
  
'Yeah!' said Sand-Cloud.  
  
'Well, I'd better be going,' said Josh. 'I heard you can catch pinsirs around here. I can't wait!'  
  
As Josh walked away, Franklyn turned to me.  
  
'That guy only catches bugs?' he asked.  
  
'Yeah, it's kind of weird,' I said. 'I don't know how he gets very far with only bugs.'  
  
'That's exactly what I was thinking,' said Franklyn. 'Oh well, I guess he must be a good trainer.'  
  
'Yeah, I suppose he is,' I said. 'Well, we'd better get going.'  
  
We continued on our way to Shockwave City. After a short while I came across a wild pokÃ©mon that looked like a bolt with two magnets stuck to it. I took out my pokÃ©dex.  
  
'Magnemite,' it read. 'An electric pokÃ©mon. Uses anti-gravity to stay suspended. Appears without warning and uses attacks like Thunder Wave.'  
  
'This is definitely the right path,' said Franklyn. 'If you continue down here, you'll get to Shockwave City.'  
  
'Really? Thanks,' I said.  
  
'Well, I'd better be going,' said Franklyn.  
  
'Oh, aren't you coming?' I asked.  
  
'Nah,' said Franklyn. 'I got the electric badge ages ago.'  
  
'Oh, OK,' I said. 'Bye then.'  
  
'Bye,' said Franklyn. He waved and walked away. I turned back to the magnemite-- and realised it had gone!  
  
'Damn!' I said. 'I missed my chance at getting a magnemite!'  
  
'Uh, maybe not..' said Gelby. She pointed, and I spotted a whole hoard of magnemites coming straight at us!  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Four, Chapter Ten  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Tailz the vulpix, Potow the pidgey, Catafree the butterfree, Chazz the charmeleon, Pikapi the pikachu, Raus the venusaur  
  
'Oh oh,' I said. 'They don't look very happy to see us. We'd better see if we can fight them. Go, Potow!'  
  
As soon as the magnemites saw Potow, they sent out their thundershocks and electrocuted it. My pidgey fainted in one hit!  
  
'Potow, return!' I called. 'Go, Catafree!'  
  
Once again, the magnemite electrocuted my pokÃ©mon. Catafree fell to the ground.  
  
'They must be strong,' I said. 'Catafree, return! Go Chazz!'  
  
Even my charmeleon fainted under the power of the many pokÃ©mon.  
  
'Chazz, return!' I called. 'Go, Pikapi!'  
  
Because Pikapi was an electric pokÃ©mon, the magnemites weren't very effective against it. But it also meant that Pikapi wasn't very effective against them, and it started to get weak.  
  
'Pikapi, return!' I called. 'Go, Raus!'  
  
I threw a pokÃ©ball and my huge venusaur came out. The magnemites electrocuted it, and did a lot of damage, but Raus wouldn't give up.  
  
'Raus, razor leaf!' I called. It hardly did anything against the many pokÃ©mon. But Raus kept at it, and soon a few of the pokÃ©mon had fainted.  
  
'Raus, try tackling them!' I said. Raus launched its huge bulk at the pokÃ©mon, causing a lot of them to faint. But then, from behind the magnemites, appeared a huge group of pokÃ©mon that looked like three magnemites joined together.  
  
'Magneton,' read my pokÃ©dex. 'An electric pokÃ©mon. Formed by several Magnemite linked together, they often appear when sunspots flare up.'  
  
The magnetons let out a huge thunderbolt that paralysed Raus, stopping it from attacking.  
  
'Oh no!' I said. 'Raus, return!'  
  
I turned to Gelby and Sand-Cloud.  
  
'We're going to have to run for it!' I said. I was about to start running when I felt something scratching against my leg. I looked down and saw Tailz scratching me, trying to get my attention.  
  
'Vulpix!' it said, and stepped up to the group of magnetons.  
  
'Oh no, Tailz,' I said. 'No, you can't fight them!'  
  
'Vulpix!' Tailz barked. It rushed at the magnetons and attacked. I sighed.  
  
'It's going to hurt itself!' I said.  
  
'Maybe not,' said Gelby. 'It seems determined to fight.'  
  
I watched Tailz attacking the magnetons. It was doing a lot of damage, but not enough to beat the whole group. Just when I thought the magnetons were about to win, I heard a voice.  
  
'Go, Shovel!'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Four, Chapter Eleven  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Tailz the vulpix, Shovel the dugtrio  
  
Shocked, I turned around. I smiled as I saw my friend Luke with his dugtrio. It had obviously evolved from diglett since the last time I saw him.  
  
'Luke!' I exclaimed.  
  
'Look out, guys,' said Luke. 'Shovel, dig!'  
  
Luke's dugtrio dived into the ground. While it was under, Luke rushed over to me.  
  
'Here,' he said. 'Use this potion on Tailz.'  
  
Luke handed me a potion.  
  
'Shouldn't I use it on one of the others?' I asked.  
  
'No, look at Tailz,' said Luke. 'It really wants to fight.. whoah, look out!'  
  
I jumped out of the way as Shovel dug out of the ground in front of me, throwing dirt all over the magnetons. I rushed forward, grabbed Tailz, and used the potion on it. Suddenly it was healthy again. Tailz licked me on the face before jumping out of my arms and running back to the group of magnetons.  
  
'Shovel, dig!' said Luke. Shovel dug into the ground again. The magnetons tried to attack but couldn't find Shovel while it was underground.  
  
'Tailz, quick attack!' I said. Tailz rushed at a magneton and slammed into it, causing it to faint. 'Wow, great work!'  
  
'Vulpix!' barked Tailz. It moved out of the way as Shovel burst out of the ground, covering the magnetons in dirt.  
  
'Tailz, confuse ray!' I said. Tailz turned to a magneton and stared at it, sending out its ray of confusion. When the magneton tried to hurt my vulpix, it only got confused and hurt itself. 'Tailz, quick attack!'  
  
'Shovel, dig!' said Luke. I was amazed at how well his dugtrio was doing against the magnetons. Then I remembered, not only was ground super effective against electricity, but electricity couldn't hurt ground pokÃ©mon. Shovel had managed to defeat lots of magnetons already.  
  
'Tailz, quick attack!' I said. My vulpix attacked the magneton, making it faint. There was now only one left. Shovel burst out of the ground, but the magneton dodged the attack. 'Tailz, quick attack!'  
  
'VULPIX!' Tailz roared, using all its power on the magnetons. It fainted!  
  
'Yeah!' I said. 'Great work, Tailz!'  
  
'Vulpix!' said Tailz. It looked at its tail. So did I, and I realised it was splitting in half! Tailz had finally grown a second tail! 'Vulpix! Vuuulpix!'  
  
I smiled and picked up Tailz. 'You did great!'  
  
'Shovel, return!' called Luke. 'Well, that was interesting.'  
  
I laughed. 'It sure was! How have you been, anyway?'  
  
'Great,' said Luke. 'Both Squirtle and Shovel evolved!'  
  
'Good work,' I said. 'Chazz evolved, and Raus evolved.'  
  
'Raus?' Luke exclaimed. 'Wasn't it an ivysaur?'  
  
'Yes,' I smiled. 'Now it's a venusaur!'  
  
'Whoah!' said Luke. 'And I thought my wartortle would be powerful!'  
  
I smiled. 'Well, we'd better get these pokÃ©mon to a PokÃ©Centre!'  
  
~Janet~  
  
END OF PART FOUR 


	7. Part Five

Part Five, Chapter One  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Nurse Joy, Potow the pidgey, Weedie the kakuna, Catafree the butterfree, Chazz the charmeleon, Tailz the vulpix, Pikapi the pikachu  
  
I didn't expect the path to Shockwave City to be anywhere near as long as it was! In fact, it took us a whole week to get there! I ended up catching a magnemite - who I named Horshu - and finally we got to Shockwave City. We took our pokémon to the PokéCentre.  
  
'Yes, there is a new gym in this city,' said Joy. 'It's an electric gym, the leader is Spike.'  
  
'Is he hard?' I asked.  
  
'How many badges do you already have?' Joy asked.  
  
'Three,' I replied.  
  
'It might be hard,' said Joy. 'But then again, it might not. I can't really tell. It all depends.'  
  
'OK,' I said. I looked at the others. 'Well, I might as well have a go.'  
  
'I'll stay here,' said Luke. 'I've already got the electric badge.'  
  
'Alright,' I said. I quickly thought through my pokémon, deciding which ones to take. I decided to switch Potow for Weedie - the kakuna I hadn't used for a long time.  
  
Once my pokémon were ready, I headed to the gym. The leader, Spike, saw me and smiled.  
  
'You want to challenge me?' he said.  
  
'Yes,' I replied.  
  
'Alright,' said Spike. 'But you'd better be ready for your pokémon to be paralysed!'  
  
'I'm ready!' I said. 'Weedie! Go!'  
  
'Ha!' said Spike. 'You're going to need a better pokémon than that! Go, Voltorb!'  
  
'Weedie, harden!' I said.  
  
'Voltorb, tackle the little thing!' laughed Spike. I gasped as Weedie took the hit, nearly fainting under the power.  
  
'Weedie, return!' I called. 'Go, Catafree!'  
  
'Thunderbolt!' said Spike with a smile. My butterfree cried out in pain.  
  
'Catafree, come back!' I said, annoyed with myself. I'd forgotten that Catafree was now a flying type as well as a bug type. 'Go, Chazz!'  
  
'Thunderbolt it, Voltorb!'  
  
'Chazz, ember!'  
  
My charmeleon did a lot of damage to the voltorb. I smiled. Now, things were looking better!  
  
'Tackle, Voltorb!'  
  
'Chazz, ember!' I said.  
  
'Char, meleon!' said Chazz, doing a lot of damage to the other pokémon.  
  
'Voltorb, return!' called Spike. 'Magnemite, go!'  
  
'Chazz, ember!' I said. Chazz's fire managed to burn the magnemite.  
  
'Magnemite, thundershock!' said Spike. His pokémon paralysed Chazz. It was unable to attack!  
  
'Chazz, return!' I said. 'Go, Tailz!'  
  
'Vulpix!' barked Tailz, bounding up to the pokémon.  
  
'That vulpix isn't even an adult yet!' said Spike. 'You expect to battle with a baby pokémon!?'  
  
'Tailz may be young, but it's managed to defeat plenty of magnemites before,' I said, remembering the path to Shockwave City.  
  
'Fine,' sighed Spike. 'Don't blame me if I hurt it. Thundershock, Magnemite!'  
  
'Magnemite!' said his pokémon. Its electricity bursted out, striking my vulpix.  
  
'Vuuul!' Tailz cried, falling back and landing hard on the ground.  
  
'Oh no!' I said, rushing over to pick up my vulpix. I held it in my arms. Spike had been right. Tailz was too week.  
  
'Giving up?' asked Spike.  
  
'No way!' I said. Holding Tailz in my left arm, I reached for a pokéball with my right hand. 'Go, Raus!'  
  
To my surprise, Pikapi emerged instead. I must have taken the wrong pokéball!  
  
'Never mind,' I said. 'Pikapi, get ready!'  
  
'A pikachu!' Spike laughed. 'That's nothing! See how it handles THIS!'  
  
Spike brought back his magnemite and threw another pokéball. The pokémon that came out looked a bit like Pikapi, but darker, with a longer tail.. and a lot bigger!  
  
'A raichu!' Gelby exclaimed.  
  
'Raichu,' said Spike. 'Use the thunderbolt!'  
  
'RAICHU!' said his pokémon, sending out a huge electric bolt.  
  
'Cha!' Pikapi cried.  
  
'Oh no!' I said. 'Pikapi, return!'  
  
There was no point in sending out Raus. That raichu was too strong.  
  
'I give up,' I said.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Five, Chapter Two  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Nurse Joy, Tailz the vulpix, Pikapi the pikachu  
  
'How'd you go?' Luke asked.  
  
'Hopeless,' I said, trudging into the PokéCentre. 'Can you please heal my pokémon?'  
  
'Sure,' said Joy. She took Tailz from my arms and I handed over my other pokémon.  
  
'I found the electric badge pretty easy to get,' Luke commented.  
  
'Yeah, well maybe Spike's trained his pokémon since then,' I said.  
  
'Spike?' Luke said. 'Oh, it was a different leader for me. Maybe they changed the leader when they moved the gym.'  
  
'Maybe,' I said. I sighed. 'I'm never going to beat him.'  
  
'You will one day,' said Luke. 'Your pokémon are strong.'  
  
'Not strong enough,' I said. Soon, Joy returned with Tailz and my pokéballs.  
  
'Thanks,' I said, taking them. We went and sat down. We took our pokémon out to let them get some fresh air. However, Tailz stayed with me, not wanting to play with the other pokémon.  
  
'How am I going to beat him?' I sighed.  
  
'There could be a way,' said Sand-Cloud. We turned to face her, and she smiled.  
  
'How?' I asked. Sand-Cloud opened her backpack and pulled some things out. I looked at them.  
  
'Those stones Officer Jenny gave us!' I said. 'I'd forgotten about them!'  
  
'Pikapi could evolve into a raichu,' said Sand-Cloud. 'And Tailz could evolve into a ninetales.'  
  
My vulpix looked up at the sound of its name. I looked down at it.  
  
'I'm not sure about Tailz,' I said. 'I mean, it's still only got two tails. If I evolved it now, it might not be able to grow all nine tails. And I don't want to disappoint Lucy.'  
  
'Alright, but what about Pikapi?' Gelby asked. I looked over at my pikachu, and nodded.  
  
'If Pikapi wants to, we'll do it!' I said. 'Pikapi!'  
  
My pikachu came running over to me.  
  
'Pikapi,' I said. 'How would you feel about evolving?'  
  
Pikapi stared at me. Sand-Cloud held the thunder stone out to it.  
  
'Pikapi,' she said. 'Remember that raichu you battled today? Well, this stone could make you become just like that raichu!'  
  
'Pi,' said Pikapi simply. It seemed as if it didn't really care whether it evolved or not.  
  
'Pikapi, this is a really important decision,' said Gelby. 'You have to decide whether you want to be a raichu or not.'  
  
'I couldn't help overhearing your conversation,' said Joy, coming over to us. 'You're deciding whether to evolve your pikachu?'  
  
'Yes,' I said. 'It doesn't seem to have an opinion. What do you think?'  
  
'It depends really,' said Joy. 'The thing with these kinds of evolutions is, once the pokémon evolves they don't learn any new moves. Your pikachu doesn't know all of its possible moves. So it depends on whether or not you want your pikachu to learn all its moves, or if you want it to become bigger and stronger.'  
  
I thought about this for a while.  
  
'I think I'd better let it learn all its moves,' I said. 'It can evolve after that. Is that OK with you, Pikapi?'  
  
'Pi,' shrugged Pikapi. We all laughed.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Five, Chapter Three  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Spike the pokémon leader of electric, Weedie the kakuna, Pikapi the pikachu, Chazz the charmeleon  
  
Rather than making my pokémon evolve, I went out and trained them as preparation for my rematch with Spike. I battled with them for a long time, and was happy when Weedie evolved into a beedrill! Finally, I made my way back to the gym.  
  
'So you've returned,' said Spike.  
  
'Yes,' I replied. 'And I'll win this time!'  
  
'We'll see,' said Spike. 'Go! Magnemite!'  
  
'Weedie!' I said. 'I choose you!'  
  
'Magnemite, thundershock!'  
  
'Weedie, twineedle!' I said.  
  
'Magnemite! Tackle!' said Spike. Unfortunately, my beedrill was still at a lower level than the magnemite. It was getting weak.  
  
'Weedie, return!' I called. 'Go! Pikapi!'  
  
'That pikachu?' Spike laughed. 'Magnemite, tackle!'  
  
'Pikapi, quick attack!' I said. My pokémon rushed at the magnemite, hurting it a lot. Spike was shocked.  
  
'Magnemite return!' he called. 'Go, Voltorb!'  
  
'Pikapi, quick attack!' I said.  
  
'Voltorb, sonic boom!' said Spike. It did a lot of damage to my pikachu.  
  
'Come on, Pikapi!' I said encouragingly. 'Quick attack!'  
  
'Voltorb, tackle!' Pikapi was getting weak.  
  
'Pikapi, return!' I called. 'Go, Chazz!'  
  
'Voltorb! Thundershock!' said Spike.  
  
'Chazz, rage!' I said. Chazz's latest attack was powerful, doing more damage each time it got hurt.  
  
'Voltorb, sonic boom!' said Spike. Chazz was getting angrier, making its attack stronger. When it continued using rage, the voltorb collapsed.  
  
'Voltorb, come back!' said Spike. 'Go, Raichu!'  
  
'Chazz, keep using your rage!' I said. Chazz attacked Raichu but didn't do a lot of damage.  
  
'Raichu, thunderbolt!' said Spike.  
  
'Raichu!' shouted his pokémon, sending out electricity. Chazz was hurt badly, but that only made it more angry, and so its attack did a lot more damage to Raichu.  
  
'Raichu, thundershock!' said Spike. This attack wasn't as strong as the thunderbolt, but it still made Chazz more angry. When it attacked, Raichu was badly hurt. Spike was amazed at my charmeleon.  
  
'Raichu, return!' he called. 'That's a good charmeleon you've got there.'  
  
'I know,' I said, smiling. 'Chazz was my first pokémon, and it's been great all the way through.'  
  
'Well, I think you've earned this,' said Spike. He held out a badge. I took it gratefully.  
  
'Thanks,' I said.  
  
'Good luck on the rest of your pokémon journey,' said Spike. 'What number badge is that?'  
  
'Four,' I replied.  
  
'You've still got a long way to go,' said Spike. 'But I'm sure you'll make it. Good luck to you, Team Yellow. And you too, Chazz.'  
  
My charmeleon smiled a reptile smile, happy with the compliment. I smiled, too, and headed back to the PokéCentre.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Five, Chapter Four  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson  
  
I showed Luke my new badge with a smile.  
  
'Good work,' he congratulated me. 'I knew you could do it.'  
  
'Thanks,' I said. After healing my new pokémon, we continued on our way. After a few hours we came to a place called a "Pokémon Safari". Curious, we went in to have a look. A trainer who looked not much older than us walked over to us.  
  
'Welcome!' he said. 'My name is Nathan.'  
  
'Hi,' I said. 'Um, could you tell us what this place is?'  
  
'Certainly,' smiled Nathan. 'This is one of the few Pokémon Safaris. Here, you have a chance to catch a huge variety of unique pokémon for a small price. It's great value, because there are pokémon from all different areas all in the one place. So.. what do you think? Would you like to give the Pokémon Safari a try?'  
  
I glanced at Luke, wanting to know what he thought of the idea.  
  
'OK,' he shrugged. 'We might as well give it a try.'  
  
'Great!' said Nathan. We payed him, and he started explaining a bit further. 'You just go through that gate there. You can stay for as long as you want - minutes, hours.. even days if you're willing to sleep in there! But.. you have a limit of three pokémon each. Each time you catch one, it is transferred in here. When you get three, you must come and collect them. Got it?'  
  
We nodded.  
  
'Alright then!' said Nathan. He opened the gate for us, and we stepped through. 'Enjoy your stay in the Pokémon Safari!'  
  
Nathan closed the gate and we looked around.  
  
'I feel ripped off,' said Luke. 'He makes us pay him and then he tells us we're limited to three pokémon!'  
  
I shrugged. 'There's no point in complaining about it now. Let's see what pokémon they've got in here!'  
  
We started walking, looking around for pokémon. There didn't seem to be many about. The only ones we did see were caterpies, and Luke and I both had one of them.  
  
'This place sucks,' Luke complained. 'There are hardly any pokémon.'  
  
'I wouldn't be too sure about that..' said Sand-Cloud. 'Look over there!'  
  
We looked to where she was pointing, and saw a group of mankeys.  
  
'Wow!' said Luke. 'I want to get one of them! Squirtle, go!'  
  
Luke threw a pokéball and his wartortle appeared.  
  
'Luke, that's a wartortle,' I said.  
  
'I know,' said Luke.  
  
'Then why did you say "go Squirtle"?' I asked.  
  
'Because its name is Squirtle,' said Luke. 'I didn't really know what I was doing when I caught it, and I accidentally named it Squirtle instead of not naming it.'  
  
I laughed. 'That's weird.. a wartortle called Squirtle!'  
  
'It's stupid,' said Sand-Cloud. 'You're a weirdo, Luke.'  
  
'Thanks a lot,' he said. 'Anyway, I'm meant to be trying to catch a mankey! Squirtle, water gun!'  
  
His pokémon sprayed water on the mankeys, drenching them. They shook themselves off and turned to face us. They didn't seem too happy.  
  
'MANKEY!' one shouted. Suddenly, the whole group charged at us.  
  
'Oh oh,' said Luke. 'Run!'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Five, Chapter Five  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Catafree the butterfree  
  
The mankeys were faster than we thought. They were nearly at us already.  
  
'We'll have to fight them off,' said Luke. 'What type is Mankey?'  
  
'I don't know,' I said, and pulled out my pokédex.  
  
'Mankey,' it read, 'a fighting pokémon. Extremely quick to anger. It can be docile one moment, then thrashing away the next.'  
  
'Oh great,' I said. 'They're probably going to kill us now.'  
  
'They're fighting-type,' said Sand-Cloud. 'That means you should use a flying or psychic pokémon.'  
  
I nodded. 'Go, Catafree!'  
  
Luke took out a pokéball. 'Go, Spearow!'  
  
'Catafree, confusion!'  
  
Catafree sent out a psychic wave that hit the mankeys, making them confused. Luke took advantage of the situation.  
  
'Spearow, peck!' he said. His pokémon slashed at the mankeys with its beak, doing a lot of damage.  
  
'Mankey!' the pokémon cried out in pain.  
  
'Spearow! Peck them again!'  
  
'Catafree, use your sleep powder!'  
  
My butterfree flew over the mankeys, sprinkling a fine powder over them. They started to yawn, and lay down to sleep. We hadn't beaten all of them, but the ones that were awake were now confused about the fact that the others were asleep.  
  
'Now's our chance!' I said and took out a pokéball. Luke took one of his out as well.  
  
'Pokéball, go!' we both said at the same time and threw our pokéballs at the mankeys. Two of the sleeping pokémon were zapped into our pokéballs. The lights went out instantly.  
  
'We both got mankeys!' Luke cheered.  
  
'Not yet you don't,' said Sand-Cloud. 'You've still got to get past the others to get your pokéballs.'  
  
'Oh yeah,' I said. I looked at the huge group of mankeys and sighed. 'This could be hard. Catafree, use confusion again!'  
  
'Spearow, peck them!' said Luke. Our pokémon both attacked together, and the mankeys were badly injured. They fell to the ground, beaten.  
  
'Yes!' I said. 'Come on, Luke!'  
  
We rushed over to our pokéballs and picked them up. I named my mankey "Monyet" and allowed it to be transferred back to Nathan at the Pokémon Safari. Luke looked at me.  
  
'What should I call mine?' he asked.  
  
'I don't know,' I said. 'You don't have to give it a name.'  
  
'Yes I do,' said Luke. 'Because we both got mankeys.'  
  
'That's stupid logic, Luke,' I said with a laugh. 'We're trying to become pokémon masters! One day, we'll both have ALL the pokémon. Then what are you going to do? Go and name all the ones you didn't have before?'  
  
'Fine,' said Luke. 'I won't name it then.'  
  
I laughed. 'I was only joking, Luke.'  
  
'No, it's too late now,' said Luke as his mankey was transferred back. 'The poor thing's nameless and it's all your fault.'  
  
I laughed, and we kept walking through the Pokémon Safari.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Five, Chapter Six  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Shovel the dugtrio, Raus the venusaur  
  
We had escaped the violent mankeys, and were now searching the Pokémon Safari for more pokémon. We were amazed at how many different varieties of pokémon we came across.  
  
'We're only allowed to catch three pokémon,' I reminded Luke. 'We'd better make sure we get good ones!'  
  
'I think that's a good one!' said Luke, pointing at a yellow pokémon in the distance.  
  
'What is it?' I asked. 'It's not a pikachu.'  
  
'Electabuzz,' read Luke's pokédex. 'An electric pokémon. Normally found near Power Plants, they can wander away and cause major blackouts in cities.'  
  
'Cool!' said Luke. 'Go Shovel! Use your dig attack!'  
  
Luke's dugtrio dug into the ground. After a few seconds, it burst out of the ground in front of the electabuzz, spraying dirt all over it.  
  
'Eeeelectabuzz!' said the pokémon angrily.  
  
'Quick, Shovel!' said Luke. 'Use dig again!'  
  
The electabuzz couldn't handle the ground move, and fell backwards.  
  
'Pokéball, go!' said Luke. He threw a pokéball and the electabuzz was zapped inside. The pokéball shook violently, and suddenly stopped.  
  
'Yeah!' said Luke, and went over to his pokéball. Just when he was about to pick it up, it broke open and the angry electabuzz appeared, right in front of Luke. He gulped. 'Uh.. nice pokémon...'  
  
'ELECTABUZZ!' the pokémon roared. It threw up its arms and let out a huge bolt of lightning.  
  
'Luke!' I cried out, stepping forward.  
  
'No, Janet!' said Sand-Cloud. 'Do you want it to zap you too?'  
  
I sighed and stayed where I was. Luke pulled himself up, groaning.  
  
'That thing's powerful,' he said, and stepped back slowly from the electabuzz. It saw him moving away and narrowed its eyes.  
  
'Look out, Luke!' I said. But it was too late. The electabuzz let out an even bigger thunderbolt on Luke. He fell to the ground, motionless. I gasped.  
  
'He's only fainted, Janet,' said Sand-Cloud.  
  
'Yeah, but that thing still must be pretty powerful,' I said. 'I'll see if I can stop it before it gets us, too! Go, Raus!'  
  
I threw a pokéball and my largest pokémon appeared.  
  
'Raus, razor leaf!' I said. 'Get rid of that electabuzz!'  
  
'Venusaur!' Raus roared, sending its razor sharp leaves out on the pokémon. I was amazed at how powerful my venusaur was - the electabuzz turned and ran!  
  
'Well that was easier than I expected,' I said. I looked over at Luke. 'Now we've just got to work out how to wake him up.'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Five, Chapter Seven  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Pikapi the pikachu, Raus the venusaur, Shovel the dugtrio  
  
'Luke, wake up!' I shouted, shaking him. There was no effect. I looked at Sand-Cloud and Gelby. 'That electabuzz must have really hurst him.. how are we supposed to wake him up?'  
  
'You could try resuscitating him,' said Sand-Cloud, and started laughing hysterically. 'I bet that'd wake him up!'  
  
'Oh, very funny, Sand-Cloud,' I said sarcastically.  
  
'I bet it would wake him up, though,' said Gelby. 'I mean, if he was lying there unconscious and then suddenly felt--'  
  
'That's enough, Gelby!' I interrupted. 'I don't want to hear about it!'  
  
Sand-Cloud and Gelby laughed.  
  
'You could just leave him there,' said Sand-Cloud.  
  
'I could,' I said. I took out a pokéball. 'But I've got a better idea. Pikapi, come out!'  
  
'Pi Pikachu!' said Pikapi.  
  
'Pikapi,' I said. 'Use your thundershock on Luke!'  
  
'Pi?' said Pikapi, giving me a strange look.  
  
'Yes,' I nodded. 'On Luke.'  
  
'Chu,' Pikapi shrugged and looked at Luke. 'PIKACHU!!!'  
  
Luke jumped up.  
  
'Oh, not again!' he said. He looked around, and spotted Pikapi. 'Hang on.. what happened to that electabuzz?'  
  
'Raus chased it off,' I said.  
  
'Venusaur,' nodded Raus.  
  
'But..' said Luke. 'But I wanted to capture it!'  
  
'Luke, it's dangerous!' I said. 'It made you faint!'  
  
'That means it's really powerful!' said Luke. 'Even better!'  
  
He sighed.  
  
'Well it's too late now,' I said. We kept walking, but it wasn't long before Luke stopped, staring at something in the distance.  
  
'Luke, what are you doing?' Sand-Cloud asked.  
  
'I think that's...' said Luke. 'It is! It's the electabuzz! I've got to catch it! Come on, Shovel!'  
  
Luke ran after the electabuzz.  
  
'Trio! Trio!' said Shovel, following him.  
  
'Luke, wait!' I called. We ran after Luke, but he was faster than us. By the time we reached him, Shovel had managed to do a lot of damage to the electabuzz.  
  
'Pokéball! Go!' said Luke, and threw a pokéball. The electabuzz was zapped inside, and the pokéball shook. After a few seconds, it stopped and the light went out. 'Yeah!'  
  
'Hang on, Luke,' warned Sand-Cloud. 'Remember what happened last time?'  
  
Luke nodded, and stayed where he was. The pokéball didn't move. Luke shrugged and picked it up.  
  
'I think I've caught it,' he said.  
  
'I think so too,' I said. 'Well, at least that's one problem we won't have to worry about.'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Five, Chapter Eight  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Tailz the vulpix, Potow the pidgey  
  
'What is that!?' I asked, pointing at the pokémon I'd just seen.  
  
'Chan! See!' it said.  
  
'It's a chansey!' said Sand-Cloud. 'Quick Janet, catch it!'  
  
'It's so weird-looking,' I couldn't help saying.  
  
'Yes, but it's RARE!' said Sand-Cloud. 'That's why it's called Chansey - you might not get another chance!'  
  
I nodded. 'Go, Tailz!'  
  
'Vulpix!' Tailz said, stepping forward.  
  
'Tailz, ember!' I said.  
  
'Vuuul!' said Tailz, breathing fire on the chansey. It fell backwards.  
  
'What a pathetic pokémon,' said Luke. 'At least Electabuzz was a challenge.'  
  
'Shut up Luke,' I said. 'Pokéball, go!'  
  
The chansey was caught almost instantly. I named it "Lucky" and it got transferred away.  
  
'Well, I didn't expect to find you here!' said a voice. It was Josh.  
  
'Hi Josh,' I said.  
  
'What are you doing here?' Luke asked. 'I thought you only caught bug pokémon.'  
  
'Exactly!' said Josh. 'This place has got venonats, venomoths, scythers, pinsirs, metapods, kakunas... I even saw a butterfree!'  
  
'Uh huh,' said Luke. 'Well I personally caught an electabuzz.'  
  
'Good work,' said Josh.  
  
'Let's have a pokémon battle!' I interrupted. Josh nodded.  
  
'Sure,' he said. 'Let's make it one on one. Beedrill! I choose you!'  
  
'Potow! I choose you!' I said, throwing a pokéball.  
  
'Beedrill, fury attack!'  
  
'Potow, gust!'  
  
'Beedrill, poison sting!'  
  
'Potow, quick attack!'  
  
'Beedrill, twineedle!'  
  
'Potow, gust!'  
  
Although Josh's beedrill was strong, it was no match for my bird pokémon. Josh sighed.  
  
'Beedrill, return!' he called. 'Well that lasted long.'  
  
I laughed.  
  
'Janet, look at Potow!' said Luke. I looked at my pidgey and gasped. It was growing.  
  
'It's evolving!' said Gelby. I watched, smiling, as Potow grew into.. a pidgeotto!  
  
'Pidgeoooo!' it said.  
  
'Great work, Potow!' I congratulated it.  
  
'Well, I'd better get going,' said Josh. 'I've already got my three pokémon.'  
  
I nodded. 'Bye, Josh.'  
  
We continued walking through the Pokémon Safari, but hadn't got far when we heard a voice.  
  
'Cubone! Bone!'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Five, Chapter Nine  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Squirtle the wartortle, Tailz the vulpix, Catafree the butterfree  
  
'Wow, a cubone!' said Luke. 'Can I catch it, Janet?'  
  
'Go ahead,' I said. 'I can catch something else.'  
  
'Thanks,' said Luke. 'Go! Squirtle! Water gun!'  
  
Squirtle sprayed water on the cubone.  
  
'Cubone! Cubone!' it said, falling back.  
  
'That was a lot easier than the electabuzz!' said Luke. 'Pokéball go!'  
  
Luke threw a pokéball and the cubone was caught.  
  
'Yeah! I got Cubone!' said Luke. He turned to me. 'Now hurry up and catch another pokémon so we can leave!'  
  
I laughed. 'I'm going to find a really good one!'  
  
Luke groaned. 'Well hurry up and find it then!'  
  
'I can't just find it instantly,' I said. 'These things take time, and-- A TAUROS!'  
  
'Why do you have to find all the rare pokémon?' Luke moaned.  
  
'You shouldn't have caught that cubone!' I said. 'Quick, Tailz! Ember attack!'  
  
'Vuuulpix!' said Tailz. The tauros turned around angrily.  
  
'Tauros!' it roared.  
  
'Vulpix!' cried Tailz, hiding behind my legs.  
  
'Oh great,' said Luke. 'It's going to go psycho like Electabuzz and the mankeys.'  
  
'Not unless we can stop it!' I said. 'Go, Catafree! Use your sleep powder!'  
  
'Free! Free!' said Catafree. It flew over the tauros, sprinkling powder on it. I gasped - the tauros just kept charging!  
  
'And if we can't stop it?' said Luke.  
  
'In that case,' said Sand-Cloud. 'We RUN!'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Five, Chapter Ten  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Potow the pidgeotto, Chazz the charmeleon, Pikapi the pikachu, Nathan the safari warden  
  
The tauros was a lot faster than us, and before we knew it, it was nearly trampling us. I had to do something, fast!  
  
'Go, Potow!' I called, throwing a pokéball. 'Potow, try and whirlwind it away!'  
  
'Pidgeoootto!' said Potow, beating its wings rapidly in an attempt to blow the tauros away. It was no use.  
  
'Potow, return!' I called. 'Go, Chazz! Use your ember attack!'  
  
'Char! Meleon!' said Chazz, and used its tail to throw flames at the tauros. 'Meleon?'  
  
'Tauros!' roared the tauros, and kept charging.  
  
'It's unstoppable!' said Luke.  
  
'Maybe not,' I said. 'Let me try one more thing. Pikapi! I choose you!'  
  
'Pikachu!' said Pikapi.  
  
'Pikapi, see if you can paralyse it!' I said. 'Use thunderwave!'  
  
'KaaaCHU!' shouted Pikapi, sending its electricity straight to the tauros.  
  
'Tauros,' it moaned, and tried to keep charging. It didn't move!  
  
'Yes! It worked!' I said. 'Great work, Pikapi!'  
  
'Pikachu!' smiled Pikapi.  
  
'Now I can capture it!' I said. 'Pikapi, use your thundershock to weaken it!'  
  
'Pika,' nodded Pikapi. It approached the paralysed tauros. 'Pi... ka.... CHUUU!'  
  
Sending out a bolt of electricity, Pikapi jumped into the air. The electricity hit the tauros with amazing strength. It fell to the ground, defeated.  
  
'Good work, Pikapi!' I said. 'Go pokéball!'  
  
The pokéball struck the tauros and zapped it inside. It hardly shook at all, before the light went out.  
  
'Yes! I got Tauros!' I said happily, picking up the pokéball.  
  
'Pi Pikachu!' said Pikapi. I named my new pokémon "Torro" and it was transferred back.  
  
'Now we can finally get back,' said Luke.  
  
'You're so impatient, Luke,' said Sand-Cloud.  
  
'I want my electabuzz!' Luke smiled.  
  
'Well, it shouldn't be too far,' I said. 'The tauros chased us back the way we'd come.'  
  
We soon found the entrance to the Pokémon Safari, and walked through.  
  
'Oh, hello,' said Nathan.  
  
'We've come to collect our pokémon,' said Luke.  
  
'Sure,' said Nathan. 'What are your names?'  
  
'Janet and Luke,' replied Luke. Nathan stared at him.  
  
'You already collected your pokémon,' he said.  
  
'No we didn't,' said Luke. 'We just got back.'  
  
'Well two people just came and got Janet's and Luke's pokémon,' said Nathan. 'Two mankeys, an electabuzz, a chansey, a cubone and a tauros.'  
  
'Well get them back!' said Luke angrily. 'Those are our pokémon!'  
  
'I'm sorry, there's nothing I can do about it,' said Nathan. 'If it's any help to you, they had a parasect and a kadabra with the,.'  
  
'That's no help,' I sighed. I looked at Luke. How were we ever going to get our pokémon back?  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Five, Chapter Eleven  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Squirtle the wartortle, Chazz the charmeleon  
  
'I can't believe we've lost those pokémon,' Luke moaned as we trudged along.  
  
'I've got it!' Gelby said suddenly. We all looked at her. 'Ace and Kat!'  
  
'It couldn't be them,' I said. Luke nodded.  
  
'Their only pokémon are paras..' he stopped, realising, '... and abra.'  
  
'Exactly!' said Gelby. 'They've evolved!'  
  
'Nathan said they only just came and got our pokémon,' I said. 'So they can't be far. Come on!'  
  
We hurried down the road, and soon enough came to Ace and Kat.  
  
'Give us our pokémon you thieves!' Luke demanded. Kat laughed.  
  
'Not until you prove you deserve them!' she said.  
  
'Let's settle this with a pokémon battle!' said Ace. 'Go, Kadabra!'  
  
'Go, Parasect!' said Kat.  
  
'We can handle this,' said Luke. 'I'll take Kadabra, you take Parasect! Go Squirtle!'  
  
'Wartortle!' said Squirtle. I shook my head. I was still getting used to that.  
  
'Chazz! I choose you!' I said.  
  
'Kadabra! Confusion!'  
  
'Squirtle! Bite!'  
  
'Parasect! Absorb!'  
  
'Chazz! Ember!'  
  
It was confusing with Ace and Luke battling next to me, so I blocked them out and concentrated on my own battle.  
  
'Parasect, slash!'  
  
'Chazz, ember!'  
  
My charmeleon had the definite advantage over Parasect, and I knew it was winning.  
  
'Parasect, scratch it!'  
  
'Chazz, one more ember attack!'  
  
That was all it needed. Parasect fell back, fainted. I smiled and looked at Luke. He, too, had won.  
  
'Now give us back our pokémon!' said Luke. Ace and Kat glared at us, then dropped our pokéballs.  
  
'You win this time,' said Kat.  
  
'But we'll be back!' said Ace.  
  
'I wish they'd stop saying that,' I said.  
  
'Yeah,' Luke agreed. 'Each time they come back we win anyway.'  
  
I laughed.  
  
'Well now that I've got my pokémon back, I'd better get going,' said Luke. I nodded. 'Bye guys.'  
  
'Bye Luke,' we waved as he walked away.  
  
'Come on,' I said. 'Let's get to the next town... and the next badge!'  
  
~Janet~  
  
END OF PART FIVE 


	8. Part Six

Part Six, Chapter One  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Nurse Joy  
  
We found ourselves at a small, seaside village called Azure Town. I was surprised to find that it had its own PokÃ©Centre and PokÃ©Mart. I bought some more pokÃ©balls at the mart, then healed my pokÃ©mon at the PokÃ©Centre.  
  
'Have you come ehre to visit the gym?' Joy asked as she handed me my pokÃ©balls.  
  
'Gym!?' I exclaimed. 'This place even has a PokÃ©mon Gym?'  
  
'Yes,' said Joy. 'It's only small, but it's essential if you want to enter the PokÃ©mon League. This gym has ice pokÃ©mon.'  
  
'Thanks for telling me,' I said. 'I probably would have gone straight on past it! Come on guys, let's go to the gym!'  
  
The gym turned out to be inside a small building right on the edge of a cliff. When I went inside, I saw two young trainers having a battle. One was using a shellder and the other was using a seel.  
  
'Shellder, use clamp!' its trainer called.  
  
'Seel, headbutt it!' called the other trainer. Just as his seel was about to attack, a female trainer of around eighteen yelled out.  
  
'Stop the match!!'  
  
The whole gym was silent.  
  
'What's wrong, Jade?' an older, male trainer asked.  
  
'Nobody movie!' Jade yelled. She dropped onto her hands and knees and started searching for something on the ground.  
  
'What is her problem?' Sand-Cloud asked.  
  
'Is she the leader?' Gelby asked. 'She's a bit.. odd.'  
  
'Found it!' said Jade, standing up. She had a tiny, round object between her fingers. 'Hang on. I'll be back in a sec.'  
  
Everyone stared as she ran into a back room.  
  
'I wish she didn't have to lose her contact lenses all the time,' said the male trainer, shaking his head.  
  
'Excuse me, are you the gym leader?' I asked.  
  
'No,' he replied with a smile. 'I'm Murray, I train dragon pokÃ©mon. Jade's the leader here - I'm just visiting.'  
  
'I'm here to earn a badge,' I said. Murray nodded.  
  
'She'll be happy to fight you,' he said. 'She's always loved pokÃ©mon battling.'  
  
Jade came back into the arena.  
  
'Jade!' said Murray. 'This girl is here to fight for a badge!'  
  
'Cool!' Jade said excitedly. 'I haven't had a battle for so long. Oh, this is so exciting!'  
  
'Come on, you two,' Murray said to the young trainers. 'You have to let your sister battle now.'  
  
'Can we watch?' the boy with the shellder asked. Murray sighed.  
  
'Alright, come with me,' he said. He took the two kids to the side of the arena. Gelby and Sand-Cloud followed.  
  
'This is so cool!' said Jade. 'My pokÃ©mon haven't battled for a week or so. They'll be so happy! Are you ready?'  
  
'I'm ready,' I said.  
  
'Cool,' said Jade. 'Then let's start! I choose..'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
Part Six, Chapter Two  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Jade the ice-type pokÃ©mon leader, Pikapi the pikachu, Potow the pidgeotto, Raus the venusaur, Murray  
  
'I choose Cloyster!' said Jade, throwing a pokÃ©ball.  
  
'In that case, I choose Pikapi!' I said.  
  
'This should be easy!' said Jade. 'Cloyster, tackle!'  
  
Cloyster slammed into my pokÃ©mon with its huge shell.  
  
'Pikapi, you can do it!' I said encouragingly. 'Use the thunderbolt attack!'  
  
'Pikachu!' said Pikapi, shocking Cloyster.  
  
'It may be effective, but my Cloyster's at a much higher level,' said Jade. 'Cloyster, aurora beam!'  
  
'Pikapi, thundershock it!'  
  
'Cloyster, aurora beam!'  
  
'Pikachu!' Pikapi cried, falling back.  
  
'Oh no! Pikapi reutrn!' I said. 'Go Potow!'  
  
'I wouldn't have done that if I was you,' said Jade. 'Cloyster, ice beam!'  
  
I gasped as Potow fell to the ground. It had fainted in one hit!  
  
'Potow, return!' I called. 'Go Raus!'  
  
Jade sighed. 'This isn't going to be a challenge.'  
  
'That's what you think!' I said. 'Raus, razor leaf!'  
  
It did a lot of damage to Cloyster, but Jade didn't seem to mind at all! 'Cloyster! Blizzard!'  
  
Blocks of ice slammed into Raus, making it fall back. It shook its head and stood up, getting back into the fight.  
  
'Raus, vine whip!'  
  
'Cloyster, ice beam!'  
  
The ice move froze my venusaur. It tried to move, but couldn't.  
  
'Venusaur!' it suddenly shouted, shattering the ice.  
  
'That's one determined venusaur,' said Jade. 'But it's no match for Cloyster! Cloyster, blizzard!'  
  
My venusaur fell to the ground. The ice moves were proving too tough for it to handle. Suddenly, I realised. If Jade's first pokÃ©mon was too tough for my most powerful pokÃ©mon, imagine how tough her others would be! I could tell I wasn't going to win.  
  
'I give up,' I said with a sigh. I took my pokÃ©mon back to the PokÃ©Centre and healed them. I was surprised to see Murray there.  
  
'You're going to have to be more careful if you want to beat Jade,' he said. 'Think about the types. Jade's pokÃ©mon are ice pokÃ©mon. They're good against grass, ground, and flying. So that rules out your venusaur and pidgeotto. However, ice is weak against fire, fighting and rock. I notice you have a vulpix. Why didn't you use it?'  
  
'Tailz is very young,' I said. 'And besides, Cloyster is ice AND water. Fire is weak against water.'  
  
'I'll let you in on a secret, Janet,' said Murray. 'Jade really likes ice pokÃ©mon, but she doesn't like water pokÃ©mon anywhere near as much. None of her pokÃ©mon acutally have any water moves.'  
  
'Really?' I asked. Murray nodded. 'Murray, why are you telling me this?'  
  
'I know how hard it is to get into the PokÃ©mon League,' he replied. 'I'm just helping you.'  
  
'You mean... you're in the PokÃ©mon League!?' I asked.  
  
'Yes,' said Murray. 'I thought I already told you - I'm the dragon-type pokÃ©mon leader.'  
  
'You didn't tell me that!' I said. 'Wow. In that case, I'll take your advice! Come on, Tailz! We're going to get that badge!'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
Part Six, Chapter Three  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Jade the ice-type pokÃ©mon leader, Tailz the vulpix  
  
'I'm here for a rematch!' I said.  
  
'Cool!' said Jade. 'I hope it's a longer battle this time! Cloyster! I choose you!'  
  
'Go, Tailz!' I said.  
  
'Vulpix!' Tailz barked.  
  
'Cloyster, tackle attack!' said Jade.  
  
'Tailz, confuse ray!' I said. Cloyster started turning around in circles, not knowing what it was doing.  
  
'Cloyster!' Jade exclaimed.  
  
'Good work, Tailz!' I said. 'Now use ember!'  
  
Tailz breathed fire on Cloyster, burning it.  
  
'Cloyster, aurora beam!' said Jade. But Cloyster still didn't know what it was doing, and the burn was still hurting it. 'Cloyster, return! Dewgong, go!'  
  
'Tailz, tail whip!' I said. Tailz hit Dewgong with its two tails, making its defense drop.  
  
'Dewgong, take down!' said Jade. Dewgong pushed Tailz to the ground, holding it down.  
  
'Tail, ember!' I said.  
  
'Vulpix!' said Tailz, breathing fire straight into Dewgong's face.  
  
'Dewgong!' cried Jade's pokÃ©mon, falling back.  
  
'Quick Tailz, get up!' I said. 'Now, use ember!'  
  
Tailz burnt Dewgong. The ice pokÃ©mon was getting weak.  
  
'Dewgong, headbutt!' said Jade. Dewgong smashed its horn into Tailz.  
  
'You can do it, Tailz!' I said. 'Give it another ember!'  
  
'Vulpix!' said Tailz. Dewgong collapsed.  
  
'You may have beaten Cloyster and Dewgong,' said Jade. 'But you'll NEVER beat this.. go, Jynx!'  
  
Jade threw her last pokÃ©ball. I stared at the jynx.  
  
'That has to be the ugliest pokÃ©mon I've ever seen,' I had to remark.  
  
'Just wait till you see its power!' said Jade with a smile. 'Jynx, thrash!'  
  
Jynx started rapidly attacking Tailz. I could tell that my pokÃ©mon was losing badly.  
  
'Tailz, quick attack!' I said. 'Escape its move!'  
  
Tailz jumped at Jynx, breaking free of its thrash attack.  
  
'Jynx, ice punch!' said Jade. Jynx made a fist, and ice suddenly appeared around it. It slammed into Tailz, knocking it to the ground. 'Great work, Jynx!'  
  
'Vuuul....' murmured Tailz.  
  
'Tailz!' I exclaimed. I couldn't believe it had got this far and lost!  
  
'Vulpix!' said Tailz, forcing itself up.  
  
'You're going to keep battling?' I asked.  
  
'Pix!' nodded Tailz. I smiled.  
  
'Good on you, Tailz,' I said. 'Ember attack now!'  
  
Tailz breathed fire on Jynx, hurting it a lot.  
  
'Keep it up, Tailz!' I said.  
  
'VUUUULPIX!' roared Tailz, using all its energy on the jynx.  
  
'Wow,' said Jade. 'That's amazing!'  
  
Tailz kept breathing fire on Jynx for what seemed like ages. It finally stopped, puffing. Jynx had been defeated!  
  
'Tailz!' I exclaimed, running over to it. 'Are you alright?'  
  
'Vulpix!' said Tailz. I gasped. Another of its tails split in two! Tailz had grown its third tail!  
  
'Good work,' said Jade. 'I really think you - and Tailz - have earnt this.'  
  
Jade handed me a badge.  
  
'Thanks a lot,' I smiled.  
  
'While you're in town, you should head down to the beach,' said Jade. 'There's lots of cool pokÃ©mon there, and there's free tours!'  
  
'Thanks,' I said. 'I'll do that.'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
Part Six, Chapter Four  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu  
  
We walked along the beach, spotting hundreds of krabbies, goldeens and magikarps along the way.  
  
'It's so peaceful,' I commented. 'I feel like I'd be disturbing something if I caught one.'  
  
Sand-Cloud laughed. 'You're right! Hey, look at that!'  
  
Sand-Cloud pointed to a group of large blue pokÃ©mon in the water next to a wharf.  
  
'They look like lapras!' I said. 'Let's go have a look!'  
  
We ran towards the pokÃ©mon. As we got closer we could see that there were eight lapras in the water, and quite a few trainers standing nearby, as if waiting for something.  
  
'What's going on?' I asked. One of the trainers faced me.  
  
'It's the famous Azure Town Lapras Tour!' he said. 'The lapras take trainers out for a tour of the beach area.. and best of all, it's free!'  
  
'Sounds great!' I said.  
  
'We're just waiting for the guides to turn up,' said another trainer. 'Once they're here, we can go out on the lapras and catch some water pokÃ©mon!'  
  
I smiled. I really liked water pokÃ©mon, and I'd be sure to find some good ones at the beach!  
  
After a few minutes, the guides arrived. All the trainers suddenly rushed towards the lapras. They got on - four trainers plus a guide fitting on each lapras. The pokÃ©mon started to set out as Sand-Cloud, Gelby and I headed towards the last lapras and its owner.  
  
'Sorry,' he said to us. 'We can't set out yet. Not enough passengers.'  
  
'Not enough!?' I exclaimed.  
  
'Yeah,' the trainer nodded. 'We can't only take a couple of people out because the crowd might be too big when we get back.'  
  
'Uh huh...' I said. It sounded a bit strange to me.  
  
'Well, you can come and get on my lapras while we wait.'  
  
We nodded and climbed onto the lapras's back.  
  
'My name's Sean by the way,' said the guide. 'And my lapras's name is Lochie.'  
  
We introduced ourselves, and sat waiting for someone to turn up. Luckily, after a few minutes we saw a trainer approaching us. I looked closely, and laughed when I realised who it was.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
Part Six, Chapter Five  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Sean, Luke Smytheson, Lochie the lapras, Tailz the vulpix  
  
'We've been sitting here waiting for someone to come,' I said. 'You just had to turn up, didn't you?'  
  
Luke smiled. 'Yep.'  
  
'Well, come on,' I said. 'You can come on the lapras tour with us!'  
  
Luke climbed onto Lochie's back and sat next to me.  
  
'Ready?' Sean asked. We nodded. 'Alright Lochie, let's go!'  
  
Sean patted his lapras on the neck and it began to move. As we rode through the ocean we spotted some pidgeys, pidgeottos and fearows flying overhead.  
  
'When we reach this beach over there, you can catch all the pokÃ©mon you want,' said Sean. 'There's a lot of them, too. Krabbies, goldeens, spearows, horseas, magikarp..'  
  
'Oooh, magikarp!' said Luke sarcastically. 'How exciting!'  
  
Sean rolled his eyes. 'Well, I'm sure you'll find something to catch.'  
  
'Hey, look, Luke!' said Sand-Cloud, pointing at the water. We all looked at what she was pointing at. It was a magikarp, swimming alongside us.  
  
'Aaah!' said Luke. 'Not magikarp!'  
  
We all laughed.  
  
'Still, there is a good side to Magikarp,' I said. 'It evolves into Gyarados.'  
  
'Yeah, but is it worth it?' Luke asked.  
  
'I think so,' I said. 'Remember Leviathon, Allin's gyarados? You know how powerful it was.'  
  
'Yeah,' said Luke. 'Still, I don't think I'd have enough patience to put up with a magikarp while I'm evolving it.'  
  
'Anyway, you don't have to worry about magikarp,' said Sean. 'There's heaps of other pokÃ©mon over here.'  
  
Lochie reached the shore and pulled itself onto the sand. We climbed off and looked around.  
  
'You guys can go and look around the beach,' said Sean. 'I'll be here when you want to head back.'  
  
'That wasn't much of a "tour",' commented Sand-Cloud as we headed down the beach.  
  
'It was a free ride to this beach,' I said. 'That's good enough.'  
  
It wasn't long before I saw a young pokÃ©mon splashing playfully in the shallow water just off the beach. I gasped.  
  
'Wow,' I said. 'That has got to be the cutest pokÃ©mon I have ever seen.'  
  
'Vulpix!' said Tailz, scratching my leg.  
  
'Oh, besides Tailz of course,' I laughed.  
  
'Vulpix!' smiled Tailz. I laughed again as I took out my pokÃ©dex.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
Part Six, Chapter Six  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Tailz the vulpix, Pikapi the pikachu  
  
'Seel,' read my pokÃ©dex, 'a water pokÃ©mon, the protruding horn on its head is very hard. It is used for bashing through thick ice.'  
  
'I'd better weaken it first, even if it is young,' I said. 'Pikapi! I choose you!'  
  
My pikachu appeared from its pokÃ©ball. The seel looked up curiously.  
  
'Pikapi! Thundershock!' I said. Pikapi electrictued the wild pokÃ©mon, causing it to collapse.  
  
'Oh oh,' I said. 'Looks like I hurt it. I'd better capture it and get it to a PokÃ©Centre! PokÃ©ball, go!'  
  
The seel was sucked into the pokÃ©ball. It shook a little, but soon stopped. I picked up my newly caught seel. After I named it "Seaworth", it was transferred to PC.  
  
'I'd better heal it when we get back,' I said. 'I think Pikapi was too powerful for it.'  
  
The others nodded. We continued to walk down the beach.  
  
'I think Sean lied,' said Luke after a while. 'I don't see any of the pokÃ©mon he listed!'  
  
Sand-Cloud groaned. 'Luke, do you really expect a pokÃ©mon to just walk across your path for convenience?'  
  
Luke laughed. 'Sure, why not? They always seem to appear for Janet.'  
  
'That's what you think!' said a voice I recognised. 'But I bet I've got ten times the amount of pokÃ©mon she has!'  
  
'That's impossible,' I said to Mitch as he reached us. I took out my pokÃ©dex to see how many pokÃ©mon I had. 'I've got twenty five, so you must have two hundred and fifty. And seeing as there are only a hundred and fifty pokÃ©mon..'  
  
'Only a hundred and fifty?' Mitch laughed. 'Janet, come and look at this!'  
  
Mitch showed me on his pokÃ©dex, the silhouette of a pokÃ©mon he had seen. Written clearly underneath it was the number 183.  
  
'A hundred and eighty-three!?' I exclaimed. Mitch nodded.  
  
'That's what I thought when I saw it,' he said. 'I guess there are more pokÃ©mon out there than we thought!'  
  
'That's for sure!' I said.  
  
'Still, that's not going to stop me beating you in a pokÃ©mon battle,' said Mitch. 'Go, Venusaur!'  
  
'This should be easy,' I said. 'Go, Chazz!'  
  
Just as I was about to throw my pokÃ©ball, Tailz walked out in front of me.  
  
'Vulpix!' it barked.  
  
'Tailz!' I exclaimed. 'I called Chazz, not you!'  
  
'Vuuul...' whimpered Tailz. Its three tails drooped down. I was shocked.  
  
'Sorry, Tailz,' I said, bending down and patting the pokÃ©mon. 'I didn't mean to seound like that. Go on, you can battle then.'  
  
'Vulpix!' smiled Tailz and licked me on the hand. I laughed and stood up.  
  
'You're using your three-tailed vulpix on my VENUSAUR?' Mitch laughed.  
  
'It won't be as easy as you think!' I asid.  
  
'Vulpix!' Tailz growled at the venusaur.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
Part Six, Chapter Seven  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Mitch, Tailz the vulpix  
  
'Alright Venusaur,' said Mitch. 'Vine whip attack!'  
  
Venusaur extended its huge vines and slashed at Tailz with them.  
  
'Tailz, use ember!' I said. As Tailz breathed fire on Venusaur, I could tell that it wasn't going to do very well. Mitch laughed as Venusaur shook itself off as if nothing had happened.  
  
'Venusaur, tackle!' said Mitch. I gritted my teeth as I watched the huge pokÃ©mon hurl its weight at my little vulpix.  
  
'Tailz!' I said. 'Try your confuse ray!'  
  
Tailz stared at venusaur, its eyes glowing. Suddenly, Venusaur got dizzy and fell over.  
  
'Vulpix!' Tailz laughed.  
  
'Venusaur! Get up!' yelled Mitch. 'You can't lose to that little thing! Use razor leaf!'  
  
Venusaur sent out a gust of leaves that swirled around in the air for a while before suddenly turning back and hitting Venusaur!  
  
'Vuulpix! Vulpix!' giggled Tailz. I smiled. My pokÃ©mon was really enjoying itself!  
  
'Venusaur, return!' said Mitch angrily. 'Let's see how your vulpix handles THIS! Go, Dewgong!'  
  
I glanced at Tailz and couldn't help smiling. It had obviously remember there same thing I had - that Dewgong was an ice-type pokÃ©mon was well as a water-type!  
  
'Tailz,' I smiled. 'Use ember!'  
  
'Vulpix!' Tailz nodded, smiling. It breathed fire on Dewgong, and I was amazed at how much damage it did. Dewgong mustn' have been at a very high level.  
  
'Dewgong, return!' called Mitch. 'Go! Rhydon!'  
  
I gulped. This one might not be so easy.  
  
'Rhydon! Horn drill!' Mitch ordered before Tailz could get an attack in. Rhydon's horn started spinning like a drill, giving it huge power. I gulped. Thigns didn't look so good for Tailz. Mitch smiled to himself. Rhydon slammed its horn into Tailz, sending my vulpix flying.  
  
'No!' I shouted, running to Tailz. It was lying on the ground, fainted. That horn drill was one powerful move! I picked up my vulpix and whispered, 'it'll be alright, Tailz.'  
  
'Janet,' said Sand-Cloud. 'We'd better find Sean so we can go back and get to a PokÃ©Centre!'  
  
I nodded. 'But not yet. I'm going to pay Mitch back for hurting Tailz so badly!' I took out a pokÃ©ball and enlarged it. 'Go, Raus!'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
Part Six, Chapter Eight  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Mitch Orien, Raus the venusaur, Tailz the vulpix, Squirtle the wartortle, Sean, Lochie the lapras  
  
Mitch gulped. He knew by now that my venusaur was my most powerful pokÃ©mon.  
  
'Raus! Razor leaf!' I said. I smiled as the super effective move caused Rhydon to faint.  
  
'Rhydon return!' said Mitch. 'Go--'  
  
'No!' I cut him off. 'Mitch, I have to get to a PokÃ©Centre!'  
  
Before Mitch could object, we all turned adn headed towards Sean and Lochie.  
  
'I really wanted to catch at least ONE pokÃ©mon while we were here...' said Luke.  
  
'Luke!' said Sand-Cloud. 'What's more important - you catching a pokÃ©mon, or Tailz being healed?'  
  
Luke didn't respond. I looked at him, and sighed.  
  
'Sand-Cloud...' I said. 'We can at least let him catch ONE.'  
  
Sand-Cloud shrugged. 'If you think so.. it is your vulpix I'm worried about.'  
  
'I know,' I said. 'But it seems unfair that Luke came over here and didn't catch any pokÃ©mon, and it shouldn't take him too long...'  
  
Luke smiled at me. 'Thanks, Janet.'  
  
Fortunately, we came across a wild tentacool on our way back to Sean.  
  
'A tentacool,' said Luke. He laughed. 'That'll do. Go, Squirtle!'  
  
When Luke's wartortle appeared I couldn't help laughing. It still seemed so stupid that its name was actually Squirtle!  
  
'Squirtle, bite!' said Luke. Squirtle bit its teeth into tentacool, doing a lot of damage. The angry tentacool then wrapped its tentacles around Squirtle, crushing it.  
  
'Squirtle, withdraw!' said Luke. His pokÃ©mon shrunk back in its shell and Tentacool lost its grip. 'Go, pokÃ©ball!'  
  
Luke threw a pokÃ©ball and it hit the tentacool. It shook a few times, then stopped. Luke picked up his new pokÃ©mon with a smile.  
  
'Good work,' I said, then looked at my vulpix. 'Now we'd better find Sean and Lochie.'  
  
Luke nodded, and we hurried back to where Lochie was resting in the water, with Sean sitting on its back.  
  
'Back already?' Sean asked, noticing us.  
  
'My vulpix is hurt,' I said. 'I have to get it to a PokÃ©Centre.'  
  
Sean nodded. 'Get on, then.'  
  
We climbed gratefully onto Lochie's back and headed towrads the shore.  
  
'You should put your vulpix in a pokÃ©ball,' Sean suggested.  
  
'It's scared of pokÃ©balls,' I said. 'One day, I'll train it to go inside them, but it's only young so it's no wonder it doesn't like them.'  
  
Sean nodded. We soon came to the beach. We got off Lochie's back, and I turned around to pat the lapras gratefully.  
  
'Thanks, Sean,' I said. 'You too, Lochie.'  
  
With a wave to the boy and the pokÃ©mon, I headed towards the Azure Town PokÃ©Centre.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
Part Six, Chapter Nine  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Tailz the vulpix, Nurse Joy, Seaworth the seel, Sylvia the fire pokÃ©mon trainer, Lia the ice pokÃ©mon trainer, Tara the electric pokÃ©mon trainer, Vanessa the psychic pokÃ©mon trainer  
  
After Tailz had been healed, I decided to switch Catafree for Seaworth. I deposited my butterfree (after promising it I would get it out again soon) and was about to leave the PokÃ©Centre, when I realised it was getting dark. So we stayed at the PokÃ©Centre that night and we left the next morning.  
  
We'd been walking for less than an hour when Luke pointed at a group of four trainers in front of us.  
  
'Look familar?' he asked. I looked at the trainers and realised who they were.  
  
'It's The Stars!' I said.  
  
'No kidding,' said Luke. 'Come on, let's go talk to them!'  
  
We hurried up to our friends.  
  
'Boo!' said Luke. They all turned around.  
  
'Luke, you're not scary,' smiled Lia.  
  
'I know,' said Luke. Lia laughed. Syliva gasped.  
  
'Look at that little vulpix!' she said, bending down and patting Tailz. 'Janet, where on earth did you get such a young vulpix? It only has three tails!'  
  
'I got it from a vulpix breeder,' I said.  
  
'Wow, a vulpix breeder!' Sylvia smiled. 'I'd love to meet someone so dedicated to a single spcies of fire pokÃ©mon!'  
  
'Go and see her one day,' I said. 'Her name's Lucy and she lives between Botanical City and Sunshine Town.'  
  
Sylvia nodded. 'I will. Thanks.'  
  
I turned to Tara, remembering something.  
  
'Tara,' I said. 'You're never going to believe what my friend Allin has...'  
  
'What?' Tara asked curiously.  
  
'He has a zapdos,' I said. Tara stared at me in amazement. 'His zapdos is so smart.. he's teaching it to speak human language.'  
  
'You're lying,' said Tara after a long pause.  
  
'She's not,' said Luke. 'Its name is Spark. I've met it too, it's the most amazing pokÃ©mon I've ever seen.'  
  
'Where is it now?' Tara asked excitedly. 'I have to see it!'  
  
'I don't know,' I said. 'Allin travels around a lot, like most trainers. But you'll know him if you see him - Spark flies, it doesn't travel in a pokÃ©ball.'  
  
'This is so exciting!' said Tara. 'A zapdos that can talk!'  
  
I smiled. 'I thought you'd like to hear about it.'  
  
'Do you guys want to walk with us for a while?' Sylvia asked.  
  
'Alright,' I said. We kept travelling, and we'd only been walking a few hours when we came across Josh.  
  
'Hi guys,' he said.  
  
'Hi Josh,' I replied. My friend looked curiously at The Stars. 'These are our friends, The Stars. Sylvia, Lia, Tara and Vanessa.'  
  
'Pleased to meet you all,' said Josh. 'I'm Josh, I train bug pokÃ©mon.'  
  
'It's nice to meet someone dedicated to a particular type of pokÃ©mon,' said Tara. 'There aren't many trainers like us.'  
  
'You train a particular type, too?' Josh asked. 'What type do you train?'  
  
'Electric,' said Tara. 'Say, how about a battle?'  
  
'Sounds great,' smiled Josh, taking out a pokÃ©ball.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
Part Six, Chapter Ten  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Josh the bug catcher, Sylvia the fire pokÃ©mon trainer, Lia the ice pokÃ©mon trainer, Tara the electric pokÃ©mon trainer, Vanessa the psychic pokÃ©mon trainer  
  
'I choose Butterfree!' said Josh. Tara laughed.  
  
'I can't believe you sent out a flying type even after I told you I trained electric types!' she said. 'Go Magnemite! This should be easy!'  
  
'That's what you think,' said Josh. 'Butterfree, tackle attack!'  
  
'Flee!' said Butterfree, crashing into Magnemite. The electric pokÃ©mon didn't seem to be hurt that badly.  
  
'Magnemite, thundershock!' said Tara.  
  
'Magnemite,' said her pokÃ©mon in an electronic-sounding voice. It shot out electricity from the two magnets on either side of its body, and hit Butterfree. The big bug pokÃ©mon cried out.  
  
'Butterfree, hang in there!' said Josh. 'Stun spore attack!'  
  
'Beeefreee!' said Butterfree. It spun around in circles, sprinkling powder all over the magnet pokÃ©mon. Tara gritted her teeth.  
  
'Magnemite, thundershock!' she said.  
  
'Mag.. ne...' murmured the pokÃ©mon. It couldn't move!  
  
'Butterfree, tackle!' said Josh. Butterfree slammed into Magnemite. Because it was paralysed, the magnemite was an easy target. It fell to the ground.  
  
'Magnemite return!' Tara said angrily. 'Go Pikachu!'  
  
'Pika!' said the little mouse pokÃ©mon as it emerged from its pokÃ©ball.  
  
'Butterfree stun spore!' said Josh.  
  
'Pikachu thunderbolt!' said Tara quickly. Her pikachu was fast, and leapt in to attack first. Its electric attack caused Butterfree to faint.  
  
'Well done,' said Josh, bringing back his pokÃ©mon. 'Let's go, Beedrill!'  
  
'Pikachu, thunderbolt!' said Tara.  
  
'Pika!' said Pikachu, electricity building up around its cheeks.  
  
'Beedrill, fury attack!' said Josh. But it was too late for Beedrill, the electric pokÃ©mon got in first and was fortunate to get a critical hit. Beedrill fainted! 'Beedrill, return! Go Venonat!'  
  
'Pikachu, thundershock!' said Tara. The electric attack hit Venonat, but this bug pokÃ©mon was strong.  
  
'Venonat, poisonpowder!' said Josh. As the powder was sprinkled on its little nose, Pikachu started looking sick.  
  
'Pikachu!' Tara exclaimed. 'Oh... try a quick attack!'  
  
'Pi.. ka...' said her pokÃ©mon. It hit Venonat, managing to do some damage. But the poison was too much for it - it was losing health rapidly.  
  
'Pikachu return!' called Tara. 'Alright Josh, try this for size! I choose you, Jolteon!'  
  
With a toss of a pokÃ©ball, an electric dog pokÃ©mon with spikes on it appeared.  
  
'Jol jolt!' it barked. This one looked tough.  
  
'Jolteon, pin missile attack!' smiled Tara. Josh's eyes widened. The jolteon sent out a sharp missile that hit Venonat, causing it to collapse.  
  
'Venonat, return!' said Josh. He looked at Tara. 'I didn't know a jolteon could learn pin missile!'  
  
'Some bug pokÃ©mon trainer you are,' said Tara patronisingly. 'Everyone knows that the only non-bug pokÃ©mon which learns a bug-type attack is Jolteon.'  
  
'Well done,' said Josh. 'I must say, I wasn't expecting that. You're a good trainer, Tara.'  
  
'Don't you have any more pokÃ©mon?' Tara asked.  
  
'Yes, but I don't think they'll be able to beat that Jolteon!' Josh laughed. Tara smiled.  
  
'Well, it is my best pokÃ©mon,' she said.  
  
'Jolt!' barked Jolteon happily.  
  
'I'd better be off,' said Josh, and waved goodbye.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
Part Six, Chapter Eleven  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Pikapi the pikachu, Tailz the vulpix, Potow the pidgeotto, Chazz the charmeleon  
  
The next day we kept travelling, trying to find the next city with a gym. I was eager to get more badges, after Tailz's stunning victory over Jade. I had faith in my pokÃ©mon, and knew that they'd be able to get me the last ten badges with no problems!  
  
Before long, The Stars decided to leave us. They hadn't been travelling with us for very long, and it was nice to have their company, so I was sorry to see them go. What's worse, just after they waved goodbye, Luke decided that he should go too. So before it was even midday, it was back to just the three of us.  
  
Now that I didn't have a big group to accompany me, I was edging to find a trainer to battle or a wild pokÃ©mon to catch. Luckily, after an hour or so I came across a young trainer with a rattata on his shoulder.  
  
'Hi,' I said. 'I'm Janet.'  
  
'My name's Pete,' he said.  
  
'You up for a battle?' I asked with a smile.  
  
'Sure am!' he said, pulling out a pokÃ©ball. 'Six on six?'  
  
I nodded. 'Sounds good.' I took out my own pokÃ©ball. 'Go, Pikapi!'  
  
'Go Ekans!' said Pete.  
  
'Pikapi, thundershock!' I said. Pikapi attacked.  
  
'Ekans, wrap!' said Pete. His pokÃ©mon coiled itself around Pikapi and squeezed. I sighed. Moves like that were annoying; they took too long to finish.  
  
'Pikapi return!' I said. It was the easiest way out of the wrap move. 'Go for it, Tailz.'  
  
'Vulpix!' said Tailx, stepping forward.  
  
'Tailz, ember attack!' I said.  
  
'Vul!' said Tailz, puffing out a ball of fire. The ekans collapsed. I smiled.  
  
'Great work, Tailz!'  
  
'Vulpix,' smiled Tailz.  
  
'Ekans return!' said Pete. 'Go, Poliwag!'  
  
'Tailz, quick attack!' I said. Tailz leaped towards Poliwag and knocked it to the ground.  
  
'Poliwag, water gun!' said Pete. Poliwag fired water straight in Tailz's face. My little vulpix whimpered and ran over to me. It cowered behind me.  
  
'Oh Tailz,' I sighed. I took out a pokÃ©ball. 'Potow, your turn! Gust attack!'  
  
'Pijojojojojojojo!' said Potow. It beat its wings and sent a huge gust of wind towards Poliwag. The little tadpole pokÃ©mon was blown away.  
  
'Poliwag, return!' called Pete before his pokÃ©mon was sent too far away. 'Go Raichu!'  
  
'Oh no,' I said. 'Potow, try a quick attack!'  
  
Potow flew at Raichu with tremendous speed, knocking it to the ground.  
  
'Raichu thundershock attack!' shouted Pete. Potow fell to the ground under the power of the electric attack.  
  
'Potow, return!' I called. 'Go Chazz!'  
  
'Raichu, mega punch!' said Pete. Raichu slammed its fist into Chazz. My charmeleon was strong, and spat an ember back in its face.  
  
'Chazz, slash!' I said. Chazz raised its sharp claws, and scraped them down Raichu's face. Pete's pokÃ©mon fainted. 'Good work Chazz!'  
  
My pokÃ©mon gave me a thumbs up with its claws. I laughed.  
  
'Raichu, return!' said Pete angrily. 'I choose Diglett!'  
  
'Watch out for its dig attack, Chazz,' I said. 'Now try an ember!'  
  
'Char,' said Chazz, sending a ball of flames from its tail.  
  
'Diglett, dig!' said Pete. His pokÃ©mon pulled its head into the ground, and Chazz's attack missed. Suddenly, Diglett burst out of the ground in front of Chazz, knocking it over. My charmeleon was badly hurt, but it pulled itself up to keep battling.  
  
'Good work Chazz!' I said. 'Now, slash attack!'  
  
Chazz slashed the diglett. The little pokÃ©mon may have been fast, but its defense was nothing against Chazz's power. It fainted!  
  
'Diglett, return!' called Pete. 'Alright Meowth, your turn!'  
  
A cute cat-like pokÃ©mon appeared from his pokÃ©ball.  
  
'Chazz, slash!' I called. I was getting amazed at my pokÃ©mon's strength - the meowth fainted in one hit!  
  
'Alright Charmeleon, you may have come this far,' said Pete. 'But you won't beat my best pokÃ©mon! Go, Rattata!'  
  
'Char,' laughed Chazz as the tiny pokÃ©mon leapt off Pete's shoulder and prepared for battle.  
  
'Don't let your guard down Chazz, it might be tougher than it looks,' I warned my charmeleon. 'Try an ember attack!'  
  
'Rattata hyper fang!' said Pete. His speedy pokÃ©mon charged at Chazz. It bit into my pokÃ©mon deeply, and its ember attack went flying into the air, missing completely. Chazz fell to the ground.  
  
'Chazz!' I cried out. This rattata was really strong! Chazz glared at the purple pokÃ©mon, then threw it off with all its might. I smiled. 'That's right Chazz, rage attack!'  
  
'Rattata, bite!' said Pete. His pokÃ©mon bit Chazz, but that only made my charmeleon angry. It roared, breathing fire all over the rattata. The pokÃ©mon blinked, then fell over.  
  
'Rattata!' Pete exclaimed, rushing over to his pokÃ©mon. 'Rattata, are you alright?'  
  
'Rattata..' mumured his pokÃ©mon. Pete turned to me angrily.  
  
'Your charmeleon is a big old meany!' he said and ran away. Chazz smiled. I looked at it and saw that its tail was burning especially brightly. It couldn't be..  
  
'Chazz!' I exclaimed.  
  
'Char!' roared Chazz. My charmeleon's neck started to get longer, its body bulkier, its hind legs sturdier. Two majestic wings sprouted out of its back. I was no longer looking at a charmeleon, but a big, light orange charizard!  
  
'Oh Chazz!' I said, overjoyed. I hugged my pokÃ©mon. 'I'm so proud of you!'  
  
'Char,' smiled Chazz. I felt so lucky to have it. We'd been through a lot together, and its evolution was just the beginning of a new step in our journey.  
  
~Janet~  
  
END OF PART SIX 


	9. Part Seven

Part Seven, Chapter One  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Tailz the vulpix, Chazz the charizard  
  
We travelled for a few weeks without finding any gyms. We were now in what appeared to be a disused, even abandoned, town. All the buildings were missing windows, doors swung open... the place was deserted. What was worse, was the fact that it was getting dark, and there wasn't a PokÃ©Centre for hours.  
  
'I'm tired,' sighed Gelby.  
  
'My feet hurt,' Sand-Cloud complained.  
  
'Sorry guys,' I said. 'But we can't really stop here, we've got to at least find a good place to camp out for the night.'  
  
Sand-Cloud nodded, and the three of us kept walking. It wasn't long before I heard a strange noise behind us. I turned around, but nothing was there. I shrugged and kept walking.  
  
'Gast!'  
  
'What was that!?' Gelby exclaimed.  
  
'I don't know,' I said uncertainly, looking around. Suddenly, something that looked like a ball of gas with eyes appeared in front of us.  
  
'GASTLY!' it shouted. We all screamed.  
  
'Vulpix!' Tailz cried, leaping into my arms. I comforted my little vulpix. Calming ourselves down, saw that the thing was laughing at us.  
  
'What is that?' Sand-Cloud asked.  
  
'I think it's a pokÃ©mon,' I said as I took out my pokÃ©dex.  
  
'Gastly,' it read. 'A ghost and poison pokÃ©mon. Almost invisible, this gaseous pokÃ©mon cloaks  
  
the target and puts it to sleep without notice.'  
  
'You think it's funny to scare people like that!?' Sand-Cloud demanded of the gastly.  
  
'Gast!' it shouted.  
  
'Vulpix!' Tailz squealed.  
  
'Don't be so cruel!' I said angrily. 'This vulpix is only a baby, how could you scare it like that?'  
  
'Gastly!' Gastly said. Tailz whimpered.  
  
'It's OK Tailz,' I said softly. The little pokÃ©mon shivered. It was so scared. I got out a pokÃ©ball. 'I'll show you! Chazz, go!'  
  
I tossed the pokÃ©ball and out came my big charizard. It narrowed its eyes at the gastly.  
  
'Chazz, ember attack!' I said.  
  
'Char,' said Chazz, spitting a ball of fire at Gastly. The pokÃ©mon was engulfed in flames. It blinked, then looked angrily at Chazz.  
  
'GASTLY!' it roared.  
  
'Char,' said Chazz. It loomed over the gastly, and the smaller pokÃ©mon started to back off. I looked at Tailz.  
  
'Tailz, are you alright?' I asked.  
  
'Vulpix,' murmured my pokÃ©mon.  
  
'Thanks for that, Chazz,' I said. 'Tailz will be alright soon.'  
  
We started walking again. I left Chazz out of its pokÃ©ball; its bright flame helped us to make our way through the thick darkness. Before we'd barely started walking, we heard footsteps behind us.  
  
'Oh, I'm so sorry,' said a soft voice. 'Did my gastly scare you?'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Seven, Chapter Two  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Tailz the vulpix, Chazz the charizard, Seaworth the seel  
  
We turned around, and saw a girl who looked younger than me looking at us.  
  
'That was your gastly!?' Sand-Cloud exclaimed.  
  
'Yes,' the girl nodded. 'I know it seemed like it was up to no good, but it was just trying to have a bit of fun. You must understand, ghost pokÃ©mon are like that. They don't mean to hurt you.'  
  
'Well look what it did to my vulpix,' I said. I showed her the cowering, small fox pokÃ©mon in my arms.  
  
'I'm sorry,' she said. 'Is there any way I can make it up to you?'  
  
'Do you have somewhere we can stay the night?' Gelby asked. 'We can't find any PokÃ©mon Centres.'  
  
'Certainly,' nodded the girl. 'Follow me.'  
  
She led us away. We soon came to a large building in the middle of the town; I was amazed that we hadn't noticed it before. This one looked well cared for, unlike the rest of the town. It was really out of place.  
  
As we entered the building and looked around, I realised that it looked just like the inside of a gym. I looked at the girl curiously.  
  
'Is this a pokÃ©mon gym?' I asked her.  
  
'Oh, I'm sorry,' she replied. 'I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Elspeth, I'm the ghost-type gym leader.'  
  
'You're a gym leader!?' I exclaimed. She nodded.  
  
'I've been training ghost pokÃ©mon ever since I was five,' she said. 'I was saved once by a gengar and I've never forgotten it. That's why I love ghost pokÃ©mon so much.'  
  
'This is great,' I said. 'My name's Janet, I'm a pokÃ©mon trainer. I've been looking for a gym but haven't been able to find any for ages. If you don't mind, would I be able to battle you?'  
  
'Certainly,' smiled Elspeth. 'I haven't had any challengers for a long time, it will be nice to have a battle. I'll just get my pokÃ©mon ready. You can use the PC and the healing machine over there, if you like.'  
  
I nodded. 'Thank you.'  
  
I headed over to the healing machine and healed all my pokÃ©mon. Then I turned on the PC. I wasn't sure which pokÃ©mon to use. I'd never encountered ghost pokÃ©mon before so I wasn't sure what was good and what was bad against them. I decided to keep Chazz, because it had managed to scare the gastly off easily. The team I ended up taking consisted of Chazz, Tailz (I knew it would be scared of the ghost pokÃ©mon but it refused to go in the PC), Seaworth, Raus, Potow and Catafree. Once I had my team, I approached Elspeth. She led me to the arena. I was so excited.. I was finally going to compete for another badge!  
  
'I choose Seaworth!' I said. I threw a pokÃ©ball and my adorable seel appeared.  
  
'I choose Gastly!' said Elspeth. She threw her own pokÃ©ball and the gastly who had scared us earlier appeared. The battle was about to begin.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Seven, Chapter Three  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Seaworth the seel, Chazz the charizard, Catafree the butterfree, Elspeth the pokÃ©mon leader of ghost  
  
'Alright Seaworth,' I said. 'Use your headbutt attack!'  
  
'Seel!' nodded my pokÃ©mon. It leapt towards Gastly, ready to hit it with its horn. I gasped as I watched Seaworth go straight through Gastly, as if it were.. a ghost...  
  
'Oh no,' I breathed. 'Ghost pokÃ©mon can't be hurt by physical attacks.'  
  
'You're going to have to be tougher than that if you want to beat ghost pokÃ©mon!' Elspeth said with a smile. 'Gastly, lick attack!'  
  
Gastly floated over to where Seaworth had crash-landed. My seel turned around and glared at it. Gastly opened its mouth and stretched out a long tongue. It licked Seaworth, and then started laughing. My pokÃ©mon looked sick. It fell to the ground stiffly.  
  
'Seaworth!' I exclaimed.  
  
'Se..' it couldn't even say the one word it normally could.  
  
'Seaworth return!' I called. Which pokÃ©mon would be best against a ghost? 'Alright Chazz, your turn!'  
  
I threw a pokÃ©ball and out came my charizard. I knew it had the potential to beat Gastly, it had managed to frighten it off earlier.  
  
'Gastly, confuse ray!' Elspeth ordered.  
  
'Chazz, ember!' I said. Chazz puffed out an ember attack, and managed to get in before Gastly's confuse ray. My charizard's power was still too much for the Gastly; it was nearly fainted already!  
  
'Char!' Chazz laughed at the gastly. I smiled. Chazz was giving Gastly a taste of its own medicine.  
  
'GASTLY!' it shouted angrily.  
  
'Char!' Chazz roared.  
  
'Chazz, ember!' I said. Gastly's eyes opened wide as more flames engulfed it. It fell to the ground, defeated.  
  
'Gastly return!' called Elspeth. 'Go.. Haunter!'  
  
'Chazz, this one looks tougher,' I warned my pokÃ©mon. 'Be careful, buddy!'  
  
Chazz turned around and gave me an "OK" signal. I smiled.  
  
'Haunter, lick!' said Elspeth. Her haunter used the same attack that Gastly had defeated Seaworth with. My charizard was much stronger than my seel, but it still did considerable damage. This haunter was strong.  
  
'Chazz, ember!' I said.  
  
'Haunter, hypnosis!'  
  
I gasped. I didn't know haunter could learn hypnosis. Chazz struggled to keep its eyes open, but before long it was on the ground asleep. I sighed.  
  
'You tried your best,' I said, recalling my pokÃ©mon. 'Alright Catafree, your turn!'  
  
'This should be easy,' said Elspeth. 'Haunter, night shade!'  
  
The attack was very powerful, and my butterfree was weakening already.  
  
'You may be tough but you're no match for Catafree!' I said. 'Catafree, confusion!'  
  
'Free!' said Catafree. Its powerful confusion attack sent Haunter spinning. The ghost pokÃ©mon simply didn't know what it was doing anymore.  
  
'Who's got the last laugh now?' I smiled.  
  
'Free!' Catafree agreed.  
  
'Haunter return!' Elspeth said angrily. 'You've been lucky so far, but luck won't be enough to defeat my best pokÃ©mon! Come on out, Gengar!'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Seven, Chapter Four  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Catafree the butterfree, Potow the pidgeotto, Raus the venusaur, Tailz the vulpix, Elspeth the pokÃ©mon leader of ghost  
  
'Come on out, Gengar!'  
  
A large, devilish pokÃ©mon materialised from Elspeth's pokÃ©ball. It looked really tough.  
  
'Catafree, confusion!' I said. Gengar shook off the attack and grinned a huge grin.  
  
'Gengar, hypnosis!' said Elspeth. Catafree fell out of the sky; I called it back before it hit the ground. What was I going to do now?  
  
'Potow, go!' I said. I knew it was almost useless. Nearly all Potow's attacks were normal-types.  
  
'Gengar, lick!' said Elspeth.  
  
'Pidgeooo!' Potow cried.  
  
'Hang on, Potow!' I said encouragingly. 'Use your wing attack!'  
  
Potow slammed its wings into Gengar. I was surprised that wing attack affected the ghost pokÃ©mon, but I wasn't going to complain!  
  
'Gengar, night shade!' said Elspeth. Potow simply couldn't handle Gengar's power anymore - it fainted!  
  
'Potow, return,' I called. 'OK Raus, it's up to you!'  
  
'Venusaur!' roared my huge pokÃ©mon.  
  
'That's an impressive-looking venusaur,' Elspeth commented. 'But it won't be able to handle Gengar's might! Night shade attack now!'  
  
'Saur, saur,' said Raus. It shook its head, trying to ignore the pain. I bit my lip. This gengar was really powerful.  
  
'Raus, leech seed!' I called. A seed popped out of the flower on Raus's back and planted itself on Gengar. Elspeth narrowed her eyes.  
  
'Gengar, lick!' she said. Her pokÃ©mon attacked Raus, but didn't manage to paralyse it.  
  
'Raus, razor leaf!' I said. The swirl of leaves sliced into Gengar, but didn't seem to do much damage.  
  
'Huh,' said Elspeth. 'Gengar is a poison type as well as a ghost type. Grass attacks aren't going to be very effective.'  
  
'Raus can handle anything!' I said. 'Raus, try another razor leaf!'  
  
'Venusaur!' roared Raus, sending out another flurry of leaves.  
  
'Gengar, hypnosis!' said Elspeth hurriedly. The leaves fell out of the air as Raus fell down with a thump.  
  
'Raus, wake up!' I called desperately. 'Come on Raus, you've gotta wake up!'  
  
'Gengar,' said Elspeth with a smirk. 'Dream eater.'  
  
I watched in horror as Raus started yelling out as if it was having a nightmare. Gengar suddenly looked a lot healthier than before, and Raus looked almost fainted.  
  
'Raus, return!' I called sadly. I only had Tailz left. I looked down at my vulpix hopefully. It cowered behind my legs, too afraid of the gengar. I knelt down to it.  
  
'Tailz,' I said softly. 'Please, try and battle.'  
  
'Vul..' whimpered Tailz.  
  
'You're my only hope,' I said pleadingly. 'And if you can overcome this fear, you'll be one of the strongest vulpixes in the world. I know it takes a lot of courage to confront your fears, but please.. at least try it, for me?'  
  
'Vul,' said Tailz. It had tears in its eyes. I realised I shouldn't be forcing it to battle if it didn't want to.  
  
'Alright,' I said, patting it on the head. 'You don't have to, I can try again some other time.'  
  
'Pix,' said Tailz quietly. I stood up and looked at Elspeth.  
  
'Do you forfeit?' she asked. I was about to open my mouth to say yes..  
  
'Vulpix!' Tailz stood up boldly in front of me.  
  
'Tailz!' I exclaimed.  
  
'Vul!' said Tailz determinedly. I was overjoyed with it. It was going to face its fears to battle for me. I was so proud.  
  
'Thank you, Tailz,' I said gratefully. I looked at Gengar. I wasn't sure if Tailz could beat it, but even trying would at least help Tailz to overcome its fear. I smiled. 'Tailz, ember attack!'  
  
'Vul, pix!' said Tailz. It breathed out an ember, which hit Gengar. It didn't seem to do much damage.  
  
'Gengar, lick!' said Elspeth.  
  
'Dodge it!' I said. My vulpix was quick, and it managed to jump out of the way of Gengar's attack. I smiled. 'Now, another ember!'  
  
'VUL!' Tailz shouted, breathing a huge ember attack on the gengar. It cried out in pain. Tailz was really getting some damage done now.  
  
'Gengar, night shade!' said Elspeth. Gengar attacked. My vulpix fell over, its energy drained. Oh no.. it couldn't be over already!  
  
'Tailz!' I cried. My pokÃ©mon shook itself, standing up and facing the gengar. It was puffing, obviously tired out, but it was determined to win now. And once a pokÃ©mon got determined like that, nothing could stop it. I knew from experience. 'Tailz, ember!'  
  
'VULPIX!' Tailz roared. The ember attack slammed into Gengar with more powerful than I'd ever seen come from Tailz. The ghost pokÃ©mon looked dizzy, then fell over backwards.  
  
'Gengar!' Elspeth exclaimed, rushing over to her pokÃ©mon.  
  
'You did it, Tailz!' I shouted. My vulpix ran towards me and leapt into my arms. 'Oh Tailz, I'm so proud of you!'  
  
'Vul, vul, vul!' Tailz said happily. 'Vul, vul.. vulpix?'  
  
Tailz turned its head to look at its tails. I smiled to myself; I'd had a feeling this would happen. I set my vulpix on the ground and watched as another of its tails split in half. I now had four tails. It was getting stronger and stronger all the time.  
  
'Well done, Janet,' said Elspeth. She held out a small object. A badge. I took it thankfully. 'You're a very skilled trainer, and your pokÃ©mon are among the best I've seen. The way that vulpix built up the courage to overcome its fears was just amazing.'  
  
'You're telling me,' I smiled. 'Tailz can be shy at times, but when it battles, it's the best vulpix there is. I'm very proud of it.'  
  
'Pix,' smiled Tailz.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Seven, Chapter Five  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Nurse Joy  
  
We stayed at the gym for the night and left early the next morning. The town looked completely different in daylight. It was less spooky and although it was still obviously abandoned, it somehow had a more welcome feel to it.  
  
Soon, however, we were out of the town and on the road again. We travelled for a good few hours, and finally made it to a PokÃ©Centre in the afternoon. I gave my pokÃ©mon to Nurse Joy to get healed, and sat down to wait.  
  
'Ee! Ee!' yipped a pokÃ©mon voice. I saw two little eevees running through the PokÃ©Centre playing with each other. Looking around, I saw a trainer holding an older eevee, another trainer with a vaporeon, and another with both a jolteon and an eevee. I started to wonder whether it was just a coincidence..  
  
I looked to Nurse Joy to see if my pokÃ©mon were ready. She was handing over some pokÃ©balls to a young trainer. He opened them, and out popped three eevees and two flareons. Something was definitely going on here.  
  
'Janet, your pokÃ©mon are ready,' called Joy. I walked over to her and collected my pokÃ©mon.  
  
'Thanks,' I said. 'Hey, what's with all the eevees?'  
  
'Oh, didn't you know?' Joy smiled. 'Around this time every year, we hold an eevee trainer's conference right here in the PokÃ©Centre. All these trainers are getting ready for it.'  
  
'What exactly is an eevee trainer's conference?' I asked.  
  
'It's where a top eevee breeder comes in to talk about Eevee and its evolutions,' Joy explained. 'They give tips and advice to trainers. You're welcome to stay and watch if you like.'  
  
I looked at Sand-Cloud and Gelby. They shrugged.  
  
'We might as well,' I said.  
  
An hour later, the PokÃ©mon Centre was closed to the public and only those there to view the eevee trainer's conference were allowed in. There weren't as many trainers as I had expected; probably only twenty or so.  
  
'Hey Janet,' said a voice. I looked up and saw Luke. I laughed. He always ran into us on our pokÃ©mon journey.  
  
'Hi,' I said. 'You here for the conference too?'  
  
'Well obviously,' he said, rolling his eyes.  
  
'Do you have an eevee?' I asked.  
  
'No,' he said. 'But I want one. I might as well learn about them now so that when I do get one, I'll know what to do with it.'  
  
'Same here,' I said.  
  
Within ten minutes, everyone was silent and a girl who seemed only a year or two older than me appeared with a vaporeon, a jolteon, a flareon and two little eevees.  
  
'Welcome to the eevee trainer's conference,' she smiled. 'Thanks everyone for attending. My name's Sally, and as you know, I'm an eevee breeder.'  
  
She went on to talk about her history as an eevee breeder. It turned out that she had won awards for her work five years in a row, and was one of the most popular eevee breeders around.  
  
'Eevees are very popular pokÃ©mon for a variety of reasons,' she said. 'By themselves, they make great pets. They're friendly by nature so they're great for young children. They're also popular among trainers, mainly because of their evolution capabilities. It is commonly known that when an eevee is exposed to an evolution stone, it can transform into one of three pokÃ©mon: vaporeon, jolteon or flareon. As you've probably heard, there have been several reports of different evolutions of the eevee, but none of these are officially recognised as yet.  
  
'And now I want to introduce you to these two little eevees,' she went on. 'They're twins, which is very rare with pokÃ©mon bred in captivity. Their names are Evy and Evan. Now although they may look young, these eevees are at the stage where they are ready to evolve. It is best to evolve your eevee at an early stage, as it means it will learn more of the moves learnt by whichever species you choose to evolve it into.'  
  
Sally went on to talk to us about the different moves which eevees could learn, using Evy and Evan as examples. The two little eevees were very well trained, and listened to every command she gave them. I was quite fascinated with them. I was also amazed at how much Sally knew about eevees. I guess when you're dedicated to a particular species of pokÃ©mon, you try and learn as much as you can.  
  
Just when Sally was starting to talk about different ways of training eevees, a loud signal went off. Everyone looked around, alarmed. A red light started flashing near the counter of the PokÃ©Centre. What on earth was going on!?  
  
Nurse Joy rushed into the main room.  
  
'There's a fire!' she shouted. 'Everyone out!'  
  
~Janet~  
  
Part Seven, Chapter Six  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Tailz the vulpix, Nurse Joy, Sally the eevee breeder, Evy the eevee, Evan the eevee  
  
'There's a fire! Everyone out!'  
  
Everyone started yelling and screaming and rushing for the door. In all the commotion, I lost sight of Tailz.  
  
'Tailz!' I yelled. 'Where are you?'  
  
'Vul!' I heard my pokÃ©mon crying. I finally saw it, cowering in a corner. I rushed over and pulled it into my arms.  
  
'It's alright Tailz,' I said softly. Smoke started filtering into the main room, and I knew it wasn't alright. Nurse Joy was trying to keep everyone under control.  
  
'Everyone please, make sure your pokÃ©mon are alright!' she called. But no one was listening to her, they were all just trying to get themselves out.  
  
'Sand-Cloud,' I said. 'Can you make sure Tailz gets out of here? I'm going to go help Nurse Joy.'  
  
She hesitated. 'Sure.'  
  
I put Tailz down; Sand-Cloud was too small to be able to carry it.  
  
'Tailz, just follow Sand-Cloud and Gelby, alright,' I said. It nodded, and I hurried over to Joy.  
  
'Do you need some help getting the pokÃ©mon out?' I asked.  
  
'Yes,' she said. 'Please, follow me!'  
  
She hurried into the room where the sick pokÃ©mon were kept. There weren't all that many pokÃ©mon so it wouldn't take too many people to get them all out.  
  
'Take this oddish, and be careful of its broken foot,' said Nurse Joy, handing me an oddish. 'And this weedle, but try not to touch its stinger.'  
  
I nodded and, holding the two pokÃ©mon in my arms, rushed out of the PokÃ©Centre. I put the pokÃ©mon on the ground and rushed back inside.  
  
'Don't worry, we've got the rest,' said Nurse Joy. She ran out carrying a shivering growlithe, with a trainer next to her carrying a spearow. 'Just get out of here!'  
  
I nodded and ran back outside. I couldn't see my friends anywhere, so I just stayed where I was. I looked at the burning PokÃ©Centre and shook my head sadly.  
  
'Janet,' said Luke's voice. He walked over to me.  
  
'Hi,' I said.  
  
'Where were you?' he asked. 'I was getting worried..'  
  
'I was helping Joy get the pokÃ©mon out,' I said.  
  
'Oh,' said Luke.  
  
'Where are Evy and Evan!?' Sally exclaimed desperately, running from trainer to trainer. Luke and I looked at each other. I felt my heart drop. What if they'd been left inside? Those two little eevees wouldn't be able to battle those huge flames. I couldn't bear the thought of the little pokÃ©mon being trapped inside there. I bit my lip, then gathered my courage and ran back towards the PokÃ©Centre.  
  
'Janet!' Luke yelled. 'Wait!'  
  
He rushed after me, and caught up just as I was going inside the burning building.  
  
'You can't just run in there!' he said. He took out a pokÃ©ball. 'Squirtle, go!'  
  
The pokÃ©mon that appeared was a huge turtle pokÃ©mon with cannons on its back. His wartortle (with the rather odd name of Squirtle) must have evolved.  
  
'Come on,' he said. We hurried into the building, Squirtle following. 'Squirtle, fire a water gun!'  
  
'Blast!' said Squirtle. It sent out huge jets of water from its cannons, but they didn't do much against the flames. I started coughing; the smoke was overpowering.  
  
'Evy! Evan!' I called out.  
  
'Eee...' I heard a voice whimper. Holding my hand over my mouth, I rushed towards where the voice had come from. I saw the two eevees huddled up together, shivering with fright.  
  
'It's alright now,' I said, scooping Evy into my arms. Luke picked up Evan. 'It's alright, we'll get you out.'  
  
'Squirtle, keep using water gun!' said Luke. Squirtle managed to clear a path through the flames, and we hurried back out of the PokÃ©Centre. When we got outside, we saw that everyone had their vaporeons out, trying to reduce the flames. Some trainers had other water pokÃ©mon, and they were also there with their water guns.  
  
'Eee..' Evy said, still shivering.  
  
'You're safe now, Evy,' I said. 'Everything's going to be fine.'  
  
The eevee looked up at me and stared at me for a while. Then, the cute little face turned into a smile. I smiled back. Running the risk of going back inside that building, had definitely been worth it, to see the look of gratitude on that little pokÃ©mon's face.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
Part Seven, Chapter Seven  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Sally the eevee breeder, Evy the eevee, Evan the eevee, Tailz the vulpix  
  
'I don't know how to thank you enough,' said Sally. The fire had been stopped for a few hours now, but everyone was still recovering. 'I can't believe you two risked yourselves to save Evy and Evan.'  
  
'They both love pokÃ©mon,' said Sand-Cloud. 'They'd do anything to save a pokÃ©mon in danger.'  
  
I smiled at Evy, who was sitting on my lap.  
  
'Janet, Luke,' said Sally. We looked at her. 'As a token of my appreciation.. I.. I would be honoured if you two took care of Evy and Evan for me.'  
  
We looked at each other, then looked at Sally.  
  
'We can't do that,' I said. 'They're your eevees, you've cared for them all their lives. It wouldn't be right for us to take them.'  
  
Sally shook her head. 'I'm a pokÃ©mon breeder, Janet. I sell eevees all the time. If you two didn't take those eevees, someone else would eventually.'  
  
I looked at Evy, looked at Luke and Evan, then looked back at Sally.  
  
'Go on,' said Sally with a smile. 'I'll be much happier knowing they're in the hands of great trainers like you, than in the hands of someone I know nothing about. Please, I want you to be their trainers.'  
  
We finally gave in. 'Alright.'  
  
'Good luck then,' said Sally. She patted Evy and Evan on their little heads. 'Be good, you two.' She looked at us. 'I suggest evolving them soon, if you want to use them in battle. Make your choice carefully, because remember, once a pokÃ©mon has evolved, it can't ever change back.'  
  
I'd already made my decision. I picked Evy up and looked at it.  
  
'Evy,' I said. 'How would you like to be a vaporeon?'  
  
'Ee! Ee!' it said happily. I smiled. I still had that water stone I'd gotten from Officer Jenny ages ago. I took it out. It was the first time I'd ever evolved a pokÃ©mon in this way. I looked at Luke.  
  
'I like Flareon,' he said. 'What about you, Evan?'  
  
'Ee!' said Evan. It seemed happy. Luke and I looked at each other, then nodded. We took our stones, and pressed them to our new eevees. We watched as they grew. Evy's tail grew long and fin-like, a frill of fins appearing around its neck and ears. It turned a soft blue colour. I smiled and looked at Evan, who was now a flareon.  
  
Sally smiled at the two pokÃ©mon. 'Good luck, you two. I think your new trainers will treat you wonderfully. Goodbye.'  
  
Evy and Evan seemed somewhat sad about leaving Sally, but once she turned and left, they seemed happy again. I looked at my new pokÃ©mon with a smile. I'd always wanted a vaporeon.  
  
'We'd better find somewhere to stay for the night,' said Gelby. 'We can't exactly stay in the PokÃ©Centre.'  
  
'How did that fire start, anyway?' I asked as we walked along, Evy, Evan and Tailz all walking next to us.  
  
'Apparently there was a sick charizard that went out of control,' said Sand-Cloud. She shook her head. 'I'm glad you've trained Chazz well, after seeing how much damage that thing did!'  
  
We kept walking, before finally settling down in a clearing off the side of a path. As I went to sleep I thought about the day's happenings. It had been pretty disastrous, but in the end it had been for the better. I now had a vaporeon, and Luke now had a flareon. I still didn't feel quite right about getting Evy in the circumstances that I had, but I was very happy to have been given it. I knew it would be a valuable member of my time, and would help me on the road to becoming a pokÃ©mon master.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Seven, Chapter Eight  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Tailz the vulpix  
  
We headed down the path with our new pokÃ©mon in our pokÃ©balls and a new feeling of confidence in our hearts. Both Luke and I now had six badges. We weren't even halfway there, but winning those gym battles had given us the knowledge that we could succeed in our dream to become pokÃ©mon masters.  
  
I hadn't captured any pokÃ©mon since my seel, Seaworth, about a month earlier. I had been given Evy the vaporeon the day before, but I was in the mood for catching pokÃ©mon. So we all headed into a nearby forest in hope of adding some new pokÃ©mon to our teams.  
  
The forest was crawling with caterpies and weedles, but Luke and I both had one of each, so we went deeper into the forest in search of rarer, more valuable pokÃ©mon. I soon caught sight of a cute little bug pokÃ©mon with big eyes and two little antennae. I took out my pokÃ©dex.  
  
'Venonat,' it read. 'A bug and poison pokÃ©mon. Lives in the shadows of tall trees where it eats insects. It is attracted by light at night.'  
  
'Alright Tailz,' I said, nodding to my vulpix. 'Use ember!'  
  
'Vul!' said Tailz, breathing out a ball of fire.  
  
'Veno! Nat!' cried the pokÃ©mon. Tailz had done a lot of damage to it. It was almost fainted already. I threw a pokÃ©ball. It shook, then broke open. This was one tough venonat.  
  
'Tailz, try and weaken it a bit more,' I said. 'Quick attack!'  
  
Tailz charged at Venonat, knocking it to the ground.  
  
'Venonat!' said Venonat. It sprinkled a light powder over Tailz. My pokÃ©mon sniffed, then collapsed on the ground. It was sleep powder. I sighed, then tried to capture the venonat again. I tossed a pokÃ©ball, and was surprised that the light went off quickly this time. I picked up the pokÃ©ball, pleased with my capture. I named my venonat "Palido" and it was transferred away. Then I scooped Tailz into my arms and looked at the others.  
  
'Let's look for some more pokÃ©mon!' I said. They nodded.  
  
Before long, Luke spotted a pidgeotto. It was one of the only evolved pokÃ©mon I'd seen in the wild, and I was quite shocked to see it. Luke didn't have a pidgey or a pidgeotto, so he decided to try and capture it.  
  
'Go, Electabuzz!' he said, throwing a pokÃ©ball. The big yellow creature appeared. It didn't look very happy. In fact, it turned to Luke and growled at him. I thought back to the time he had caught it.. it hadn't seemed very happy then either. I supposed it was just naturally angry.  
  
'Electabuzz..' said Luke. He sounded almost.. scared. 'Use your thundershock.'  
  
'Buzz,' said Electabuzz defiantly. It crossed its arms and looked away. Luke sighed.  
  
'Come on Electabuzz,' he said. 'Just listen to me. Thundershock!'  
  
'Buzz,' said Electabuzz. Electricity was starting to build up around its horns.  
  
'Aim at that pidgeotto,' said Luke, pointing to the innocent-looking bird in the tree.  
  
'ELECTABUZZ!' roared Electabuzz. Its thundershock wasn't aimed at Pidgeotto. It was aimed at Luke. My friend cringed as the electricity flowed through his body. When the thundershock was over, he collapsed. Sand-Cloud and Gelby were laughing. I was horrified.  
  
'Luke, are you OK?' I asked, bending down to him.  
  
'I'm fine,' he tried to smile. 'I'm actually getting used to it..'  
  
'Does it always attack you!?' I exclaimed. Luke nodded with a sigh.  
  
'It's still angry at me from when I battled with it at the PokÃ©mon Safari,' he said. 'No matter how hard I try, I can't get it to obey me. If I could, it would be nearly unstoppable, but as it is.. the only thing it can stop is me.'  
  
'Oh Luke,' I sighed. I looked over at Electabuzz, who appeared to be having a casual chat to the pidgeotto Luke was trying to catch. I took Luke's hand and pulled him up. 'If you want that pidgeotto I suggest you send out another pokÃ©mon..'  
  
Luke nodded. 'Electabuzz, return. Go, Nidorina!'  
  
I didn't know Luke had a nidorina. Then I remembered that he caught a female nidoran near the start of our pokÃ©mon journey - it had obviously evolved.  
  
'Nidorina, scratch!' said Luke.  
  
'Nido!' said Nidorina, scraping its claws down Pidgeotto.  
  
'Pidgeoo!' said the pokÃ©mon angrily. Nidorina had hurt it badly.  
  
'Nidorina, poison sting!' said Luke. His pokÃ©mon hit Pidgeotto with its sharp horn, causing it to fall to the ground. Luke threw a pokÃ©ball, and managed to successfully capture the pidgeotto.  
  
'Good work,' I said.  
  
'Thanks,' he smiled. He looked at my nidorina. 'Nidorina's one of my best pokÃ©mon.'  
  
'Why don't you evolve it?' I asked. 'You've still got that moon stone, right?'  
  
Luke nodded. 'But remember what Nurse Joy told us? It won't learn any new moves if I evolve it too soon. I want to make sure it learns all its moves first.'  
  
'Fair enough,' I said. 'I'm doing the same with my pokÃ©mon that will evolve by stone. OK, let's see what else we can find in this forest!'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Seven, Chapter Nine  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Evy the vaporeon, Moogle the gloom, Chazz the charizard, Potow the pidgeot, Seaworth the seel, Chern the fearow, Raus the venusaur  
  
We were looking for pokÃ©mon, but we came across something better. A friend I'd battled with a few months back, Kew!  
  
'Janet, Luke!' she smiled. 'I didn't know you two knew each other!'  
  
Luke and I looked at each other and laughed.  
  
'We've been friends for years,' I smiled. 'I didn't know you and Luke knew each other!'  
  
'We battled a few times over the six months or so,' said Kew. She turned to Luke. 'I met Janet a few months ago.' She smiled. 'Her metapod evolved after battling me.'  
  
I laughed. 'That's right! Catafree owes a lot to you!'  
  
Kew smiled. 'Well, how about another battle?'  
  
'Sure,' I nodded. 'Go, Evy!'  
  
I'd been waiting for a good chance to use my new vaporeon. It was so cute, it had to be good!  
  
'Go, Moogle!' said Kew, throwing a pokÃ©ball. The gloom I had battled before appeared. It looked really strong now!  
  
'Evy, tackle attack!' I said.  
  
'Vapor!' said Evy, throwing Moogle to the ground.  
  
'Moogle, petal dance!' said Kew. Her gloom started spinning around, leaves flowing from the plant on its head. I hadn't seen this move being used before, but it sure was strong! My young vaporeon couldn't handle the powerful grass attack.  
  
'Evy return!' I called. 'Go, Chazz!'  
  
'Oh wow,' smiled Kew. 'I remember when Chazz was just a little charmander!'  
  
I smiled. 'We've been through a lot since then, and it's stronger than ever now!'  
  
'I'll bet it is!' said Kew. 'Alright Moogle, absorb!'  
  
Moogle tried sucking energy from Chazz, but it hardly did any damage.  
  
'Chazz, ember,' I said. Chazz spat an ember at Moogle. My tough charizard managed to knock the gloom out easily.  
  
'Moogle return!' called Kew. 'Go Gyarados!'  
  
I hadn't seen this one of Kew's pokÃ©mon before, it was a gyarados. The big dragon-like water pokÃ©mon looked strong. I wasn't sure Chazz could handle it, but I decided to try anyway.  
  
'Chazz, slash!' I said. Chazz cut into the gyarados with its sharp claws, dealing a lot of damage.  
  
'Gyarados, hydro pump!' said Kew. I was amazed at how strong her pokÃ©mon had become. The huge blast of water knocked my charizard out easily.  
  
'Chazz return!' I called. 'Go Potow!'  
  
'Ha!' Kew laughed. 'Bad choice, Janet. Gyarados, ice beam!'  
  
The ray of ice sent Potow crashing to the ground. I recalled my pokÃ©mon. Kew must have gotten hold of a TM to teach her gyarados that move. I hadn't taken that possibility into account.  
  
'Go Seaworth!' I said. It was risky, but I had a feeling that my seel would do well against the gyarados.  
  
'Gyarados, bite!' said Kew. As Gyarados crushed Seaworth in its jaw, I bit my lip. Maybe I was wrong.  
  
'Seaworth, aurora beam!' I said desperately. A multi-coloured beam appeared from Seaworth's horn and crashed into Gyarados. It did considerable damage, and then I remembered that gyaradoses were flying types as well as water types! Seaworth kept at the aurora beam for a few more turns, and finally managed to beat Gyarados. It was really puffed out, but I kept it out, my faith in it being renewed.  
  
'Gyarados return!' Kew called. 'Go, Chern!'  
  
I laughed. She'd finally made a mistake, sending out that fearow! 'Seaworth, aurora beam!'  
  
Seaworth didn't do as much damage as I had expected. Chern was tougher than I'd thought.  
  
'Chern, drill peck!' said Kew. Chern's beak starting spinning like a drill, and when it hit Seaworth, it sent my seel flying with the impact. That fearow was definitely strong!  
  
'Seaworth return!' I called. I couldn't send out Tailz - it was asleep. I had to send out Raus, even if it was a grass type.  
  
'Fearow, peck!' said Kew. The basic flying move still did a lot of damage to Raus. But I knew my venusaur wouldn't give up.  
  
'Raus, tackle!' I said. Raus hauled its weight at Chern, pinning it to the ground. 'Now, razor leaf!'  
  
Raus sent its storm of leaves into Chern right when it had the fearow in its grasp. Kew's pokÃ©mon fainted!  
  
'Chern, return!' Kew called. 'That venusaur is strong, but it's no match for.. my strongest pokÃ©mon! Let's go, Zing!'  
  
~Janet~  
  
Part Seven, Chapter Ten  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Kew, Raus the venusaur, Zing the charmander  
  
'Let's go, Zing!'  
  
I couldn't believe that her strongest pokÃ©mon was a charmander! It had to have some kind of special strategy; even its fire attacks would be no match for my fully-evolved venusaur!  
  
'Raus, leech seed,' I said casually. When Raus sent out its mysterious seed, Zing jumped out of the way and managed to dodge the attack.  
  
'Zing, fire blast!' said Kew. I gasped. Her little lizard opened its mouth and breathed out a five-pointed star of flames. This was the most powerful fire attack that existed. I had no idea that Zing knew that move!  
  
'Saur!' Raus cried as the flames engulfed it. When the fire cleared, my venusaur was badly burnt but still determined to win.  
  
'Raus, you'd better come back,' I said, holding out my pokÃ©ball.  
  
'Venusaur!' Raus shook its head and looked at Zing. I sighed. One of these days, I really had to teach Raus to know when to stop battling.  
  
'Alright Raus, razor leaf!' I said. Raus nodded and sent out a flurry of razor-sharp leaves, cutting into Zing. The charmander shook off the attack.  
  
'Zing, fire spin!' said Kew.  
  
'Char!' shouted Zing, opening its mouth and letting out a ring of fire. It wrapped around Raus, immobilising my venusaur. Raus couldn't attack, couldn't escape, and was being hurt badly both by the fire spin and the burn it had gotten from the fire blast.  
  
'Raus, it's time to stop the battle,' I said firmly.  
  
'Saur!' said Raus, shaking its head.  
  
'Raus!' I said. 'You're only going to hurt yourself. You are stopping NOW.'  
  
Kew turned to me. 'Do you want to stop the battle?'  
  
I nodded, and Kew called Zing back. Now, whether it liked it or not, Raus had nothing to battle.  
  
'Well done,' I congratuled Kew. 'That charmander is so strong!'  
  
'I know,' smiled Kew. 'A lot of people don't realise it, but unevolved pokÃ©mon can be really strong if you train them right. And if you go to the larger pokÃ©mon marts you can find all sorts of stat boosters, as well as TMs.'  
  
I nodded. 'I was wondering how you taught it fire blast.'  
  
'Raus is a really strong pokÃ©mon,' said Kew, looking at my venusaur. 'You've just got to teach it that it can't win them all.'  
  
'I know,' I sighed. 'It never gives up. Most of the time that's a good thing, but when it gets to the point where it's just hurting itself, I can't bear to see it battle..'  
  
'I know how you feel,' said Kew. 'I didn't feel quite right about letting Zing keep battling it, either. But it's still one of the strongest venusaurs I've ever seen!'  
  
She patted Raus on the head. 'You battled really well out there, Raus. You should be proud.'  
  
'Saur,' said Raus, looking away. I sighed.  
  
'Raus, winning isn't everything,' I said. 'Sometimes defeat can be just as good experience in the long term than victory.'  
  
'Venusaur,' Raus murmured. I sighed again. Was it ever going to learn?  
  
'If you're quite done counselling your venusaur...' said Luke impatiently. 'Can we get going?'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Seven, Chapter Eleven  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Kew, Tailz the vulpix  
  
We continued on our way through the forest, determined to catch some more pokÃ©mon. Kew decided to stick with us for a while. It was nice to have another friend with the group again. I was getting sick of carrying Tailz, but knew that if I put it in a pokÃ©ball it would be angry with me when it woke up. So I kept trudging through the forest with my little vulpix in my arms, looking around for some pokÃ©mon to battle.  
  
Unfortunately enough, we found a pokÃ©mon trainer. One who we weren't all that pleased to see. Who else but my rival, Mitch?  
  
'Team Yellow,' he said simply.  
  
'Mitch,' I nodded.  
  
'Your pokÃ©mon still as pathetic as ever, I see,' said Mitch, motioning to Tailz.  
  
'That's what you think!' I said. 'If my pokÃ©mon weren't worn out I'd battle you and show you how strong they are!'  
  
'Yeah right,' said Mitch. He snorted. 'They must be pretty pathetic if they're "worn out" anyway. My pokÃ©mon are in perfect condition!'  
  
'Let me guess,' said Sand-Cloud. 'You've just been to a PokÃ©Centre.'  
  
'Oh, you're so funny, aren't you?' said Mitch sarcastically.  
  
'Er,' said Kew, speaking up. 'Who is this?'  
  
'My rival,' I sighed. 'Mitch. His goal in life is to use his over-sized ego to annoy us.'  
  
'Maybe if she didn't spend so much time making her own over-sized ego so obvious, she'd see that my pokÃ©mon really are better than hers,' said Mitch.  
  
'That's.. great..' said Kew. 'Um, let's go now.'  
  
'Good idea,' I said. We started heading off. Mitch glared at us, annoyed. He had obviously wanted a battle. Too bad.. I'd have to beat him some other time.  
  
Soon enough, we found our way out of the forest and to a PokÃ©Centre. We healed our pokÃ©mon, and I finally got to stop carrying Tailz! We then headed to a PokÃ©Mart to pick up some more supplies. After buying some pokÃ©balls, potions and other items, I noticed a map on the wall of the store. It showed all the towns which had gyms in them. Looking closer, I noticed that there was a gym not far from here. In a place called Venom City, I could earn a badge for the poison type. I smiled and decided to head there. Luke and Kew informed me that they already had this badge, but decided to stick with me anyway. So off we headed down the road that would lead us to Venom City. I couldn't wait to have another gym battle!  
  
~Janet~  
  
END OF PART SEVEN 


	10. Part Eight

Part Eight, Chapter One  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Kew, Tailz the vulpix, Catafree the butterfree, Evy the vaporeon, Raus the venusaur  
  
OK, so maybe I wasn't brilliant at reading maps. In fact, maybe I wasn't even good. You could even say that I couldn't read maps for peanuts. Not that I'd want to read maps for peanuts, but that's not the point. The point is, I'd obviously read the map in the PokÃ©Mart wrong, because after walking down the path that I thought led to Venom City for about a week, we still weren't there. We did get there eventually, but it was about three weeks later, after we'd stopped by at another town, got a good look at another map, and everyone had angrily shown me how totally wrong I was.  
  
So by the time we finally trudged into the PokÃ©Centre in Venom City, I wasn't exactly the most popular person around. In fact, everyone refused to accompany me to the gym, even Sand-Cloud and Gelby, who usually loved watching me battle. So off I went to Venom Gym, accompanied only by the vulpix at my feet and the pokÃ©balls in my pockets. I didn't care that I didn't have anyone to cheer for me, I just wanted that badge.  
  
'So you're here for a match?' the gym leader asked as I walked in. I nodded.  
  
'I'm Janet, from the Reflexion Kingdom,' I said. 'I'm here for the poison badge.'  
  
'My name is Nic,' said the gym leader. 'And I'm going to make sure you don't get that badge! Let's go.'  
  
'Tailz, you're up,' I said, nodding to my vulpix.  
  
'Vul!' it said, stepping into the arena.  
  
'Hmph,' said Nic. 'That vulpix isn't even an adult. Look at those four tails.. pathetic. Go Nidorina!'  
  
He threw a pokÃ©ball and a nidorina appeared. Luke had one of these, I'd seen it battle and it was pretty strong. But Tailz could handle it.  
  
'Tailz, ember!' I said.  
  
'Vuuuul!' said Tailz, breathing fire on Nidorina.  
  
'You'll have to do better than that,' said Nic. 'Nidorina, horn drill!'  
  
The horn on Nidorina's head started spinning rapidly as the pokÃ©mon advanced on Tailz. This looked bad.  
  
'Vul...' Tailz murmured as it stepped back, afraid.  
  
'Nido!' shouted Nidorina, suddenly leaping at Tailz and crashing into it with its horn.  
  
'VUUUUL!' Tailz shrieked. I gasped. Fainted in one hit!  
  
'Oh no!' I cried, rushing over to my vulpix and picking it up.  
  
'Pathetic,' said Nic. I narrowed my eyes. I didn't like this guy's attitude.  
  
'Catafree, I choose you!' I said, throwing a pokÃ©ball.  
  
'A bug!?' Nic laughed. 'Oh, you really don't have any idea what you're doing, do you? Nidorina, poison sting.'  
  
'Ni!' said Nidorina. It hit Catafree with its horn, hurting it badly. I bit my lip. I'd forgotten that poison-type moves were good against bug- types. Still, Catafree had something in store for Nidorina..  
  
'Catafree, confusion!' I said.  
  
'Flee!' said Catafree. It glared at Nidorina, sending out psychic waves. The poison pokÃ©mon's eyes spun around; the attack was making it dizzy.  
  
'Ni, do!' it cried, falling to the ground. I was surprised. I hadn't expected Catafree's attack to be that strong!  
  
'Well done Catafree!' I smiled.  
  
'Nidorina return!' called Nic. 'Go, Nidorino!'  
  
Well, it was nice to see he had such a big variety of pokÃ©mon.  
  
'Catafree, confusion!'  
  
'Nidorino, poison sting!'  
  
These poison attacks were really powerful.. Catafree was starting to get really weak.  
  
'Catafree, return!' I called. 'Go, Evy!'  
  
My vaporeon hadn't done much battling, but I was confident that it was strong enough to fight - and beat - Nidorino.  
  
'Evy, bite!' I called. My vaporeon dug its teeth into the nidorino, but it wasn't enough.  
  
'Nidorino, horn drill!' said Nic. I gulped. I'd seen what Nidorina's horn drill had done to Tailz... would Nidorino's do the same to Evy?  
  
Fortunately for me, my agile vaporeon evaded the attack. I smiled and told it to use quick attack. The nidorino was slowly wearing down, but it was going to be a while before I won this match.  
  
'Nidorino, horn attack!' said Nic. This attack didn't look too interesting; the nidorino just leapt at Evy horn-first. But the effects were disastrous. This nidorino was strong. I sighed as my vaporeon collapsed. Nic's pokÃ©mon were strong. I was in for a tough battle if I wanted to win this..  
  
'Evy return!' I called. 'Go, Raus!'  
  
'Ahh,' nodded Nic. 'Now this one looks a bit better. Still, it's nothing on my nidorino! Nidorino, horn drill!'  
  
'Veenusaur!' roared Raus.  
  
'Raus, you've got to avoid that attack!' I said, biting my lip as I saw the nidorino's horn start spinning. Raus just narrowed its eyes at its opponent, getting ready to fight. The vulpix in my arms moved, and I looked down at it. It was blinking its eyes, looking at the nidorino.  
  
'Vul!' it cried suddenly. 'Vul! Vulpix pix!'  
  
Raus turned around. 'Saur?'  
  
'Vul!' nodded Tailz. 'Vulpix vuuul!'  
  
But it was too late for Tailz to help Raus; Nidorino crashed into my huge grass pokÃ©mon with its horn and sent it flying. I stared in shock as my venusaur crashed to the ground on the other side of the room, totally knocked out. I gulped.  
  
'You give up yet?' sneered Nic. I recalled Raus to its pokÃ©ball. Things were looking really, really bad. He'd knocked out four of my pokÃ©mon - two of which were among my best pokÃ©mon - without his second pokÃ©mon even being worn out. I couldn't win this battle, I could see that. And I knew it was my responsibility as a trainer to forfeit before any more of my pokÃ©mon got hurt.  
  
'I do,' I said with a nod. Nic grinned.  
  
'Nidorino, return!' he called. As the pokÃ©mon returned to its pokÃ©ball, its trainer spun the ball on his finger. Show-off. 'I hope to see you again sometime. You can lose to me then, too!'  
  
I glared at him. Some trainer he was. 'We'll see about that.'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Eight, Chapter Two  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Kew, Tailz the vulpix, Chazz the charizard, Potow the pidgeotto, Raus the venusaur, Pikapi the pikachu, Seaworth the seel, Nic the pokÃ©mon leader of poison  
  
'Guess who lost!' smiled Luke.  
  
'Shut up Luke,' I said. My expression wasn't that readable, was it? I took my pokÃ©balls and Tailz over to the counter. Nurse Joy took them to get healed. I sat down with my friends and sighed.  
  
'You shouldn't have been so quick to challenge him,' said Sand-Cloud. 'You haven't done any hard training for a while, we've spent too much time trying to get here. Go out and train those pokÃ©mon some more, then go back when you're sure they're ready.'  
  
I nodded. 'I will.'  
  
I decided it might be a good idea to rethink my pokÃ©mon team, after I'd been defeated so easily. After analysing types and moves, I decided on my new team. I chose Chazz, the charizard who I'd been with from the start and also one of my strongest pokÃ©mon; Potow the pidgeotto, the second pokÃ©mon I'd caught and my best flying-type; Raus, my over-determined venusaur who refused to give up; Pikapi the little pikachu with a lot of power - I hoped I could get it to learn all its moves soon so I could evolve it into a raichu; Seaworth the amazingly cute seel who was still learning but had a lot of potential; and Tailz my loyal vulpix, simply because it refused to be put in the PC!  
  
'OK everyone, come out!' I said, throwing my six pokÃ©balls. My pokÃ©mon appeared in front of me. I smiled. 'Alright guys, we've got a tough battle ahead of us against the poison-type gym leader. I want to make sure you're all doing the best you can, so we're going to have to train hard. Are you willing to train hard to beat that leader?'  
  
My pokÃ©mon all nodded and said something in their own languages. I smiled.  
  
'Alright, let's start,' I said. 'Potow, I think you're nearly ready to learn wing attack. That move should help us a lot.. most grass type pokÃ©mon are also poison-types so Nic's likely to have some grass types too. That means that Chazz and Tailz, you two are going to have to work on those fire attacks of yours. I know you can do it. And Seaworth, aurora beam should come in handy too. Raus, your grass-type moves won't do a lot against poison pokÃ©mon, so I think we're going to have to perfect your normal-type moves. Your tackle attack is really strong, but we can make it stronger. I've actually been thinking about this and I think it might be a good idea to try and get hold of a TM to teach you body slam. And finally Pikapi.. you should be able to use swift attack by now, and that's a really effective attack. Hopefully you'll learn thunder soon, and you'll be unstoppable!'  
  
Pikapi smiled. 'Chu.'  
  
'Alright,' I said. I clapped my hands. 'Let's head to the forest and find some pokÃ©mon to battle!'  
  
The training was hard. We battled as much as we could over the next few days, and my pokÃ©mon got better and better. Potow mastered wing attack, and I had a feeling that it could be going to evolve after a few more tough battles. Chazz's flamethrower was amazing, it took out any grass pokÃ©mon we came across in one hit! The little Tailz wasn't doing as well, but I didn't really expect it to. Still, I made sure I congratulated it and made sure it felt good about its progress. And it had every right to - for such a young pokÃ©mon it was doing amazingly well. I knew that before long it would grow its fifth and sixth tails and finally be able to reach its full potential. Maybe I could even evolve it then.. that would make Lucy so proud!  
  
Raus's tackle attack was really strong, and I decided not to search around for a body slam TM yet. If I did come across one I'd be sure to use it on my venusaur, but it wasn't my top priority at the moment. Pikapi's swift attack was coming along beautifully and it was doing really well considering it was an unevolved pokÃ©mon and quite young, too. I was very proud of Seaworth, also a young pokÃ©mon. Its aurora beam was very powerful, and its headbutt was a great normal-type attack to back it up.  
  
I finally decided that my pokÃ©mon were ready for a rematch with Nic. After all this time, Sand-Cloud, Gelby, Luke and Kew had decided to forgive me for misreading the map, and agreed to come along with me to the gym.  
  
'I'm here for a rematch!' I said as I entered the doors. Nic, his nidorino in his lap, looked up.  
  
'I'd be glad to beat you again,' he smiled. I smiled back patronisingly. This time was going to be different.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
Part Eight, Chapter Three  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Kew, Pikapi the pikachu, Potow the pidgeotto, Chazz the charizard, Tailz the vulpix, Nic the pokÃ©mon leader of poison  
  
'Let's get started, shall we?' smiled Nic. 'The sooner I beat you the better.'  
  
I took out a pokÃ©ball. 'I choose.. Pikapi!'  
  
'Kaa!' said my pikachu determinedly as it appeared from its pokÃ©ball.  
  
'Hmph,' said Nic. 'An electric rat. Show it who's boss, Nidorino!'  
  
'Nido,' nodded the pokÃ©mon at his side.  
  
'Alright Pikapi, thundershock!' I said.  
  
'Pikaa!' said Pikapi, throwing a ball of thunder at the opponent. The nidorino ducked and managed to avoid the attack. I bit my lip.  
  
'Nidorino, horn attack!' said Nic.  
  
'Rino!' roared the pokÃ©mon, slamming into my pikachu with its sharp horn.  
  
'Chaa!' cried Pikapi, falling to the ground. Hmm, this was going to be difficult. That horn attack was really powerful.. and I didn't even want to think about what would happen when it used horn drill..  
  
'Pikapi, swift attack!' I said. Pikapi sent out a flurry of bright stars that smashed into Nidorino and seemed to do a lot of damage. I decided it would be best to stick with this attack for a while.  
  
'Nidorino!' said Nic angrily. 'Horn drill that pest!'  
  
'Pika...' said Pikapi nervously, backing away as Nidorino's horn started spinning.  
  
'Pikapi, double team!' I said, remembering the defensive attack that Pikapi had learnt recently. Horn drill was already a low accuracy move, and with double team it would be almost impossible for it to hit Pikapi! My speedy pikachu ran circles around Nidorino, giving the illusion that there were more than one of it. I smiled as Nic ground his teeth.  
  
'Nidorino, hit it!' he said. His pokÃ©mon leapt towards the closest "pikachu". It turned out to be an illusion and the poison pokÃ©mon went crashing to the ground. The other illusions disappeared and the real Pikapi was left smiling.  
  
'Alright Pikapi, swift attack!' I said.  
  
'Pika!' said Pikapi excitedly. It leapt into the air and slammed stars into Nidorino. The poor pokÃ©mon murmured in pain.  
  
'Nidorino, return!' said Nic. I smiled. One down.. 'Go, Nidorina!'  
  
The female version of his first pokÃ©mon appeared. If Pikapi could handle Nidorino, it could handle Nidorina.  
  
'Swift attack!' I said. Pikapi attacked Nidorina, but the blue pokÃ©mon just shook the attack off. I bit my lip.  
  
'Nidorina, dig!' said Nic. I opened my eyes wide. I hadn't known that nidorinas could use dig! Nic must have used a TM on his pokÃ©mon..  
  
Pikapi looked around, confused, as Nidorina dug underneath the ground. This was going to be bad. Ground attacks were super-effective against electric types! Suddenly I thought of something.  
  
'Pikapi return!' I called. 'Go.. Potow!'  
  
'Noo!' Nic exclaimed as my pidgeotto appeared. He knew what was going to happen. I smiled as Nidorina burst out of the ground, ready to attack Pikapi. But Pikapi was gone, and in its place was Potow. The flying pokÃ©mon was hovering in the air, well away from Nidorina's ground attack.  
  
'That's it!' said Nic. 'Nidorina, horn drill!'  
  
'Must you always resort to that?' I said, shaking my head. 'Alright Potow, quick attack!'  
  
Potow swooped in and attacked Nidorina before it could use its horn drill. It didn't do a lot of damage, but at least I'd delayed the horn drill. Unfortunately, when it did get the move in, it managed to make Potow faint. I sadly recalled my pidgeotto. I hadn't even been able to use its newly mastered wing attack.  
  
'Chazz, I choose you!' I said and tossed another pokÃ©ball. My big charizard appeared. Nic looked impressed.  
  
'Nidorina, take that big lizard out with fury swipes!' said Nic. His pokÃ©mon leapt at Chazz and started slashing around with its claws.  
  
'Chazz, flamethrower,' I smiled. Chazz roared and sent out a huge chain of flames. Nidorina blinked, then fell over backwards.  
  
'Nidorina, return!' called Nic angrily. 'Alright, you asked for it. Go.. Arbok!'  
  
A huge snake pokÃ©mon appeared before me. It looked really tough.  
  
'Chazz, slash attack!' I said. Chazz nodded and scratched Arbok with its claws.  
  
'Arbok, toxic!' said Nic. Arbok opened its mouth and spat out a greenish- black liquid. It hit Chazz and seemed to just seep away. I'd never encountered toxic before.. I wasn't quite sure what it did. It was probably working away at Chazz somehow..  
  
'Janet,' called Luke, as if reading my thoughts. 'Toxic drains your pokÃ©mon's energy more and more each time it attacks! This looks bad..'  
  
'Chazz can handle it,' I said confidently. 'Come on Chazz, flamethrower!'  
  
Chazz used its most powerful attack on the arbok. It did a lot of damage, but Chazz cringed with pain afterwards. I bit my lip. It wasn't right to make it keep battling, but it still had so much strength left..  
  
'Arbok, bite!' said Nic. Arbok leapt at Chazz and bit into it. My charizard cried out in pain. I couldn't take it anymore.  
  
'Chazz, return!' I called. 'Go..'  
  
'Vulpix!' said Tailz and stepped forward.  
  
'No,' I said firmly.  
  
'Vul,' growled Tailz. I sighed. It really wanted to battle. Probably after seeing Chazz, a much bigger and stronger fire type battle so well, Tailz wanted to show what it could do.  
  
'No Tailz, I don't want you getting hurt,' I said, and picked up my little vulpix.  
  
'VulPIX!' shouted Tailz, and wriggled out of my arms. It ran onto the battlefield. I sighed. It didn't know what it was doing.  
  
'Your pokÃ©mon has entered the battlefield, so I'm allowed to fight it,' said Nic. 'Arbok, poison sting!'  
  
'Charrrbokku!' roared his pokÃ©mon, opening its mouth and sending out a shower of poisonous needles.  
  
'Vul!' whimpered Tailz. It shook its head and looked angrily at Arbok.  
  
'Tailz, ember!' I said. I might as well get it to battle properly, it wasn't going to stop. My vulpix opened its mouth and spat out a ball of fire. It didn't do much damage.  
  
'Arbok, toxic!' said Nic. The snake pokÃ©mon spat out that horrible liquid and covered Tailz in it. The vulpix shook its head again, determined not to give up.  
  
'Tailz, quick attack!' I said. Tailz gathered all its energy and leapt at the arbok.  
  
'VUL!' it roared, knocking it to the ground. I was shocked at its power. The toxic attack must really have angered it.  
  
'Arbok return!' called Nic. I smiled. 'So you think you're pretty clever, do you? Well we'll see who's clever now! Go, Ivysaur!'  
  
Oh yeah, that was really clever. Sending out a grass pokÃ©mon against a fire type. Very clever indeed.  
  
'Ivysaur, leech seed!'  
  
I heard Kew gasp. I gave her a confused look. Tailz could beat that grass pokÃ©mon easily, even with a little leech seed!  
  
'Tailz, ember!' I called. Tailz spat out an ember attack. It did a lot of damage to Ivysaur, I could tell. But then, something incredible happened. The leech seed sucked Tailz's energy.. but it seemed to suck a lot more energy than it normally did. I decided not to let it bother me. Tailz could win this, I knew it could.  
  
'Ivysaur, tackle!' said Nic. Ivysaur knocked Tailz over, but my tough little vulpix prevailed. It stood up and I could see that it was building up fire inside. It knew what to do.  
  
'Ember,' I said. Tailz nodded and threw the ember at Ivysaur. The grass pokÃ©mon took a lot of damage, and it looked ready to faint. Then the leech seed took effect, and.. Ivysaur seemed to recover almost completely! And as for Tailz.. it collapsed in an instant. I never knew leech seed to do so much damage. Something was going on here.  
  
I recalled Tailz and got ready to send out my next pokÃ©mon. This ivysaur was tougher than I expected.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Eight, Chapter Four  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Kew, Nic the pokÃ©mon leader of poison, Seaworth the seel, Raus the venusaur  
  
'Seaworth, I choose you!' I said and threw a pokÃ©ball. My seel appeared and clapped its flippers excitedly. 'Seaworth, aurora beam!'  
  
'Ivysaur, razor leaf!' said Nic. Oops. I'd misthought my strategy. I'd sent out Seaworth for its ice-type attack, without thinking that Ivysaur's grass attacks would be super-effective against it. The damage was amazing, and I was forced to recall my pokÃ©mon. I had only one chance left, but I knew it would work. After all, Nic's pokÃ©mon was an ivysaur, and mine was..  
  
'Raus!' I said, throwing my last pokÃ©ball. My huge venusaur appeared. Nic frowned. He'd forgotten I had a venusaur.  
  
'Ivysaur.. uh... tackle,' he said. The tiny (well it looked tiny compared to Raus!) pokÃ©mon leapt at my venusaur and pretty much bounced straight off.  
  
'Raus,' I said. 'Show it how a tackle attack is done!'  
  
'Saur!' roared Raus. It slammed into Ivysaur and sent it flying across the room. It collapsed, defeated..  
  
'Yes!' I cried. 'We won Raus, we won!'  
  
'Uh....' I heard Sand-Cloud say. I turned around. 'Not yet you haven't..'  
  
She gestured to the ivysaur. Oh no, no, it couldn't be..  
  
'Veeeenusaur!' Nic's pokÃ©mon roared. Ivysaur had evolved! This looked bad. Really bad.  
  
Nic laughed. 'Venusaur versus Venusaur. Well this should be interesting. Venusaur, show it how a tackle attack is done!'  
  
I bet he thought he was funny. Well, he'd soon see who had the better venusaur around here. His had only just evolved, whereas mine had evolved months ago. I had experience in using my venusaur, he didn't.  
  
'Raus, tackle it back!' I said. Raus charged at Venusaur and knocked it to the ground easily. Nic looked shocked. He obviously hadn't realised, that my venusaur had a lot more battle experience than his. It was at a much higher level, and its attacks were stronger. Just because his pokÃ©mon had evolved, that didn't mean it had an equal chance. Besides, Raus had damaged it a lot when it was an ivysaur, and it was still weak.  
  
When Raus stood up again, I knew it was over. So much for the evolution.. Raus had pulled through anyway. Nic scowled and recalled his pokÃ©mon. I still didn't know whether he had any others, but I was hoping he didn't. As he dug into his pocket, I gulped. Maybe he did have more..  
  
'Here, take your stupid badge,' he said, pulling out a small badge with the poison symbol on it, and tossing it at me. I picked it up with a smile.  
  
'Thanks a lot,' I said. 'It was great battling you.'  
  
Nic just glared at me as I left the gym with my newest badge.  
  
'.. and when you combine toxic and leech seed, the leech seed absorbs more and more energy every turn, because of the effect the toxic has,' Kew explained.  
  
'Wow,' I said. 'PokÃ©mon battling is a lot more complicated than I once thought. I've still got a lot to learn.'  
  
'I thought you were done for when Ivysaur evolved,' said Sand-Cloud.  
  
'So did I,' I smiled. I patted my venusaur. 'But I can always rely on Raus.'  
  
'Saur,' smiled my pokÃ©mon.  
  
'Well now that that's over with, I'm gonna be off,' said Luke.  
  
'Aww, aren't you going to stay with us?' I asked.  
  
'No!' said Luke. 'Not after you kept us off course for weeks on end!'  
  
'Oh get over it,' I smiled. Luke smiled back and picked up his backpack. He gave me a hug.  
  
'I'll see you later,' he said. I nodded.  
  
'I think I might as well get going, too,' said Kew.  
  
'Well fine,' I said. 'Everyone just leave us!'  
  
Kew smiled. 'Yeah, we all hate you. See ya, Janet.'  
  
'See ya,' I said with a smile. Kew and Luke turned in different directions and left. So it was just the three of us again. I turned to my friends. 'Where's the closest gym?'  
  
'Calm down,' said Sand-Cloud. 'You've only just won a badge.. you need some rest before trying to win another one!'  
  
'That was my seventh badge,' I said. 'That means I'm almost halfway there. I want to get my eighth badge as soon as possible!'  
  
'OK, OK,' said Sand-Cloud. 'But it's late. We'll set out tomorrow!'  
  
'Good idea,' said Gelby, and promptly headed to bed.  
  
~Janet~  
  
Part Eight, Chapter Five  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Evy the vaporeon, Tailz the vulpix, Catafree the butterfree, Chazz the charizard, Potow the pidgeotto, Weedie the beedrill  
  
'Evy, quick attack!' I shouted. My vaporeon slammed into the wild ekans I'd just found. After seeing how powerful Nic's arbok was, I was determined to have my own.  
  
'Ekansss!' hissed the pokÃ©mon, and wrapped itself around Evy, squeezing.  
  
'Poreon!' cried Evy.  
  
'Bite!' I commanded. Evy dug its teeth into the ekans. The pokÃ©mon cried out in pain and let go of my vaporeon. I took out a pokÃ©ball. 'PokÃ©ball.. go!'  
  
The ekans was engulfed in the red and white ball, and it shook rapidly. The light went out. The ekans was mine!  
  
'Yeah!' I said, picking it up. 'I got Ekans!'  
  
I named my pokÃ©mon "Sinuos" (I, er, I knew how to spell it, I just, er, wanted it to be more original.. yes, that's it). It was transferred to my PC, and I was ready to go on.  
  
'Well done,' said Sand-Cloud. 'So how many's that?'  
  
I checked my pokÃ©dex. It said that I had caught a total of 30 pokÃ©mon. I thought that was pretty good. I only had 120 more to go! Well, I was a fifth of the way there anyway..  
  
'I've got thirty,' I said.  
  
'So Mitch probably has... about a hundred,' said Sand-Cloud with a smile. I glared at her.  
  
'That's it, I'm going to catch some more!' I said, and stormed ahead of her. I heard her and Gelby laugh as I walked off, Tailz and Evy at my side. I was determined now to catch as many pokÃ©mon as I could to catch up to my rival. I knew that what really mattered was how you trained your pokÃ©mon and how you valued them as friends.. but what Sand-Cloud had said had angered me, and at that moment I wanted lots and lots of pokÃ©mon, and soon!  
  
'Tell me if you see any wild pokÃ©mon,' I said to my vaporeon and vulpix. They nodded. Then I thought of something. 'In fact, I should get everyone out to help look! Come on out.. Catafree! Chazz! Potow! Weedie!'  
  
I threw my pokÃ©balls, and my butterfree, charizard, pidgeotto and beedrill appeared. They were all able to fly, and with their help I'd find some pokÃ©mon in no time!  
  
'OK everyone!' I said excitedly. 'I want you all to fly overhead and see if you can find any wild pokÃ©mon! Especially rare ones, rare ones are good! Just call out to me when you find one! Go get 'em!'  
  
The pokÃ©mon looked at each other, confused. Chazz shrugged and flew into the air. The others soon followed.  
  
'OK you two,' I said, looking at Tailz and Evy. 'Let's see what we can find down here!'  
  
'Vul.'  
  
'Poreon.'  
  
I started walking, looking around everywhere. Tailz and Evy had their noses to the ground, trying to pick up the scent of a wild pokÃ©mon. I was getting excited already. I couldn't wait to catch some new pokÃ©mon! Hopefully I'd find some rare ones. Like.. a dratini! OK, so a forest was a pretty unlikely place to find a dratini, but I liked to dream.  
  
About half an hour had past, and none of my pokÃ©mon - or myself for that matter - had found any wild pokÃ©mon. Which seemed really strange.. surely we'd have at least seen something by now.. whether it be a simple rustling in the bushes! By that time I was just desperate for any kind of pokÃ©mon no matter how rare.. if I didn't already have a rattata I would have loved for one to appear right in front of me!  
  
Suddenly I heard Chazz call out to me. I smiled and rushed towards where I'd heard it. As I burst into a clearing, there before me was a huge, dark, bulk of a pokÃ©mon lying on the ground. And it was fast asleep. I opened my eyes wide. It was.. a snorlax!  
  
'Woah,' I breathed. I looked at my charizard. 'Chazz.. I.. I.. thanks so much!'  
  
Chazz smiled, and I crept closer to the big pokÃ©mon. How on earth was I going to capture it? It was so huge, but it was a snorlax! A snorlax would be such a cool pokÃ©mon to train! Its sheer size would prove its worth in battles, and it was pretty cute at that! I looked to my charizard again.  
  
'Chazz,' I said. 'Think you can handle it?'  
  
'Char,' nodded Chazz, flames already spitting from its mouth. I smiled and stepped back.  
  
'Alright,' I said. 'Flamethrower!'  
  
'Char!' roared Chazz, opening its mouth and letting out a huge flame. It covered the snorlax for a few minutes, then stopped. Chazz, panting, looked in shock at the huge pokÃ©mon. It hadn't even woken up! It was, however, totally covered in ash. The snorlax murmured to itself and rolled over with an enormous thump. I looked to my other pokÃ©mon, bewildered. I decided to take out my pokÃ©dex, to see if that had any information.  
  
'Snorlax,' it read. 'A normal pokÃ©mon. Very lazy. Just eats and sleeps. As its rotund bulk builds, it becomes steadily more slothful.'  
  
'That didn't really help,' I muttered. 'OK, how can we wake it up? Hmmm... hey, I know! We don't even need to wake it up! It's easier to catch pokÃ©mon when they're asleep, so if we weaken it first, it should be a cinch to catch!'  
  
'Vaporeon!' nodded Evy. I smiled.  
  
'OK Evy,' I said. 'Quick attack!'  
  
Evy charged at the snorlax.. and bounced straight back off. This didn't look good.  
  
'Chazz,' I said. 'Go and see if you can find Potow, Catafree and Weedie. Looks like we're going to need them.'  
  
Chazz flew up into the sky, and I turned back to my pokÃ©mon.  
  
'Tailz,' I said. 'Ember!'  
  
'Vullll.... PIX!' said Tailz, shooting a ball of flames at the snorlax. Nothing happened. I sighed. This was going to be tough.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Eight, Chapter Six  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Tailz the vulpix, Evy the vaporeon, Chazz the charizard, Potow the pidgeotto, Catafree the butterfree, Weedie the beedrill  
  
'Tailz, ember! Evy, bite! Chazz, flamethrower! Potow, wing attack! Catafree, confusion! Weedie, fury attack!'  
  
My pokÃ©mon all tried their attacks at once. The snorlax murmured something and shook itself. It rolled over again.  
  
'That's it,' I said, getting fed up. 'I'm trying the pokÃ©ball. PokÃ©ball, go!'  
  
I threw my pokÃ©ball at the snorlax. It was sucked inside. The ball burst open straight away and the snorlax went back to sleeping as if nothing had happened. I tried another, and another.. but still no progress. I got out my fourth pokÃ©ball.  
  
'Char,' said Chazz, shaking its head. It walked over to me, took the pokÃ©ball out of my hand, and put it back in my pocket.  
  
'It won't work, will it?' I said. Chazz shook its head. I sighed and looked back at the snorlax. I really, really wanted that pokÃ©mon. Despite the fact that I'd been fighting it for the past half hour, I'd grown really attached to it. I didn't just want rare pokÃ©mon anymore, I wanted that snorlax.  
  
'I know!' I said finally. 'If pokÃ©balls won't work then greatballs will! I'll head to the closest PokÃ©Mart and buy some greatballs!'  
  
'Char,' nodded Chazz. I smiled.  
  
'OK, let's go everyone,' I said. I took out my pokÃ©balls and called back Chazz, Potow, Catafree, Weedie and Evy. With Tailz at my side, I ran as fast as I could. I had to get to the PokÃ©Mart and back as quick as I could, so that the snorlax would still be there when I got back! I knew they slept a lot, but it had to wake up sometime.. and there was no guarantee that it would still be asleep when I got back to it. I had to hurry.  
  
'Give me ten greatballs!' I said, puffing, as I ran into the PokÃ©Mart.  
  
'Someone's in a hurry,' said the man behind the counter as he picked up some greatballs from the shelf behind him.  
  
'Please.. it's urgent,' I said. 'I'm in the middle of trying to catch a snorlax!'  
  
'A snorlax?' said the man. 'Ooh, yes, they are toughies. But if you can catch them, they're one of the best pokÃ©mon there is. Good luck with it.'  
  
'Thank you,' I said. He handed over the greatballs, I paid him, thanked him again, and ran back to the forest.  
  
The snorlax was gone.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Eight, Chapter Seven  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Tailz the vulpix, Catafree the butterfree  
  
'No,' I said, and collapsed to the ground. 'No, it can't be gone!'  
  
'Vuuul...' said Tailz comfortingly, rubbing its head against my arm. I sighed and pulled it onto my lap.  
  
'Oh Tailz,' I sighed. 'I really wanted that snorlax. How can it be gone?'  
  
'Vulpix,' said Tailz, tilting its head. 'Vul.. vulpix! Vulpix pix!'  
  
Tailz leapt out of my arms. I looked at it curiously. It sniffed the air.  
  
'Vulpix! Pix!' it said, and ran ahead.  
  
'Tailz, wait!' I cried, rushing after it. What was it doing? It had picked up the scent of something, but what? Could it possibly be.. snorlax?  
  
It could indeed. I finally reached Tailz, sitting down wagging its four tails. I smiled and patted it on the head. In front of it was a snorlax, wide awake, and eating full branches off a tree.  
  
'Well done Tailz,' I said. 'I owe you one. OK, Catafree! I choose you! Catafree, use confusion!'  
  
'Freeee!' said Catafree.  
  
'Snor?' said the snorlax, and turned around. It covered its ears, but it was no use. The confusion attack caused it to spin around in circles. It hit its head on a branch, and fell to the ground.  
  
'Woah,' I said. 'Good work, Catafree!'  
  
I pulled out a greatball, rushed over to the snorlax and looked at it. But something looked wrong. It looked.. smaller.. than it had before.  
  
'Hang on,' I said. 'Hang on, this is a different snorlax!'  
  
'Vul?'  
  
'Flee?'  
  
'The other snorlax was bigger than this!' I said. 'This is only a young snorlax, the other one was an adult! Ohhhhh, I wanted the other one!'  
  
A voice in my head told me that it didn't matter, it was still a snorlax and besides, training a younger pokÃ©mon was easier than training an adult. But.. this snorlax looked so.. weak. The first snorlax had been big, strong, a true snorlax in my eyes. And I'd really grown attached to it. I didn't want some other snorlax to take its place. No, I had to find that first snorlax. It was the only snorlax for me!  
  
'I'm not capturing it,' I said, putting the greatball back in my pocket.  
  
'Vul!?' Tailz exclaimed.  
  
'I.. can't,' I said. 'I liked the first snorlax. I.. I wouldn't feel right about taking this one.'  
  
'Vul, vulpix pix!' said Tailz, shaking its head. It was trying to tell me to capture it anyway..  
  
'Bee free!' said Catafree, agreeing.  
  
'I'm sorry,' I said. 'But that first snorlax really connected with me.. I didn't want just any snorlax, I wanted that one. I mean, think about it. Catafree, Tailz.. to me you're just that.. Catafree and Tailz! You're not just any butterfree, or just any vulpix.. you're special to me. And that's what I want that snorlax to be.'  
  
'Vul..' said Tailz.  
  
'Free,' said Catafree. It nodded. 'Free! Free!'  
  
It flew into the air. I smiled.  
  
'See if you can spot the other snorlax, Catafree!' I called. It nodded and flew up higher. I turned back to the snorlax behind me. I patted it. 'Sorry big guy, you go back to eating. I didn't mean to try and capture you. Thought you were someone else.'  
  
With that, Tailz and I hurried through the forest to search for the snorlax I wanted so much.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Eight, Chapter Eight  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Tailz the vulpix, Catafree the butterfree, Weedie the beedrill, Potow the pidgeotto  
  
'Snorrrr!' the snorlax's cries reached me before Catafree's. It sounded.. in pain. I gasped. What was happening to it?  
  
'Free! Bee freee freeeeee!' said Catafree desperately as it flew towards me. 'Fleee fleee freee!'  
  
'Catafree, lead us to the snorlax!' I said. Catafree nodded and flew ahead, Tailz and I running along behind. I gasped at the sight before me. There was the snorlax I'd wanted, wide awake. It was standing up and thrashing its arms about angrily. And right in front of it.. were two all too familiar figures.  
  
'Kadabra, psybeam!'  
  
'Parasect, slash!'  
  
'Snorr!' the snorlax cried out as the two pokÃ©mon attacked it. Those two pokÃ©mon were really strong, they were doing a lot of damage to the huge snorlax. I turned to the two trainers angrily.  
  
'Leave that snorlax alone!' I said.  
  
'It's that stupid girl!' said Kat.  
  
'We'll show her!' said Ace. He paused. 'After we show that snorlax!'  
  
The two of them went back to ordering their pokÃ©mon to attack.  
  
'Stop it!' I shouted. 'You're hurting it!'  
  
'That was the idea,' said Kat, rolling her eyes. 'This stupid creature is what's stopping all the other pokÃ©mon from living in this forest. We came here for the rare bulbasaurs that are meant to live in this forest.. but all these stupid snorlaxes have appeared and scared the bulbasaurs away!'  
  
'It's not their fault,' I said. 'Snorlaxes eat so much they have to travel around to find more food. They're only doing it for their survival, they don't mean to scare away the other pokÃ©mon!'  
  
'Oh, why am I even talking to you?' said Kat. 'Parasect, stun spore!'  
  
'Parasecccct!' hissed the pokÃ©mon, spraying out a fine powder from the mushroom on its back. The snorlax coughed and rubbed its eyes, but it was no use. It fell over backwards, shaking the whole forest. Paralysed.  
  
'Kadabra, psybeam!'  
  
'We've got to stop them,' I said. 'Fighting pokÃ©mon to capture them is one thing but this is just plain wrong.. they're battling Snorlax just so they can hurt it because they're angry! Come on guys, let's show them a thing or two about real pokÃ©mon training!'  
  
'Free!'  
  
'Vul!'  
  
'Tailz, ember that parasect! And Catafree, tackle that kadabra!' I said. My pokÃ©mon attacked.  
  
'Hey!' said Ace. 'Leave our pokÃ©mon alone! Rrr.. Kadabra, hypnosis!'  
  
'Kadabra!' shouted his pokÃ©mon. It turned the spoon in its hand towards my pokÃ©mon and started casting its sleeping spell. Tailz collapsed, Catafree fell from the sky. This looked bad.  
  
'Weedie!' I said, throwing a pokÃ©ball. I took out another. 'Potow!'  
  
'We'll just have to put these pokÃ©mon to sleep too,' said Ace. 'I'll handle these, you take the snorlax!'  
  
Kat nodded and set Parasect back to attacking the snorlax. Kadabra stepped towards Weedie and Potow and aimed its spoon.  
  
'Weedie, twineedle!' I said.  
  
'Beeee!' said Weedie, swooping in on Kadabra. It stabbed at it with its two front stingers. The psychic pokÃ©mon looked dizzy from the effect of the bug-type attack.  
  
'Potow, get in there with quick attack!' I said.  
  
'Pidgeoooo!' said Potow, flying in and slamming Kadabra to the ground.  
  
'That's not fair!' said Ace. 'Two on one!'  
  
'You're not being fair either,' I said as I rushed in and scooped Tailz up in my arms, while pulling Catafree back into its pokÃ©ball. 'Leave that snorlax alone and maybe I'll play by the rules.'  
  
'What's so important about that snorlax anyway?' Ace asked angrily, recalling his defeated kadabra.  
  
'I like it, it's a good snorlax,' I said. 'But that's not the point. The point is you're attacking an innocent pokÃ©mon simply for trying to survive. Do you think those bulbasaurs are going to stay gone forever? No! As soon as these snorlaxes move on, the bulbasaurs will come back. And you'll be able to catch them then, not that you deserve them. So just leave the snorlaxes alone.'  
  
'Oooh, so now you're protecting the rights of pokÃ©mon everywhere?' said Kat sarcastically. 'That's so touching. Well that's going to be too bad when we catch that snorlax and use it to flatten all your pokÃ©mon! PokÃ©ball, go!'  
  
Kat threw a pokÃ©ball at the snorlax. It was zapped inside. The ball shook.. but would the snorlax have the energy after being stun spored, to break out?  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Eight, Chapter Nine  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Ace, Kat  
  
The pokÃ©ball shook violently. After being paralysed by Parasect, the snorlax would have trouble breaking out.  
  
'Come on Snorlax..' I murmured. 'Don't let them capture you!'  
  
The light went out.  
  
'No...' I breathed.  
  
'Yes!' said Kat, rushing over to the ball. Suddenly, it shook again. Kat gulped as the pokÃ©ball smashed into pieces, and the snorlax reappeared.  
  
'Snorrr!' it roared, angrier than ever now.  
  
'Uh... nice snorlax,' said Kat.  
  
'Snorlax!' said the snorlax. It lowered its head and rammed into Kat. She went flying, crash-landing into Ace. That was some headbutt attack that snorlax had!  
  
'Go Snorlax!' I cheered. The big pokÃ©mon turned to me and smiled. I smiled back. Yes, I really liked this snorlax!  
  
'Rrr.. Parasect mega drain!' shouted Kat. The snorlax looked at me.  
  
'Go on Snorlax,' I said. 'Show them what you can do! Use.. body slam, or--'  
  
'Snor!' roared the snorlax, and body slammed the parasect. I was shocked. It was.. it was listening to me! I hadn't really done anything to help it.. but this snorlax was treating me like I was its trainer!  
  
'Pa.. ra...' whimpered Parasect as the snorlax stood up to reveal a very flat-looking pokÃ©mon underneath. Kat gasped.  
  
'Parasect!' she exclaimed. She held out her pokÃ©ball and called the pokÃ©mon back. She and Ace glared at me. 'You'll regret this! You may have won this time..'  
  
'But we'll be back!' said Ace. I was really getting sick of that. But still, at least it meant that they ran away afterwards!  
  
'Wow Snorlax,' I said. 'You're really strong. It was great battling with you.'  
  
I held out my hand. The snorlax smiled and held out its own hand. I shook the huge paw with a smile.  
  
'One day I want to get my own snorlax, and I want it to be just like you,' I said. 'But now.. now I'm afraid I have to find my friends. I kind of ran off and left them behind and I really should get back to them. I hope we meet again some day. Bye Snorlax!'  
  
I gave the big pokÃ©mon a wave and turned to leave.  
  
'S.. snor?'  
  
I turned around. 'I have to go, Snorlax. It's really important that I find my friends. You go back to your friends and eat, or sleep, or whatever it is that you were doing before those creeps turned up.'  
  
The snorlax smiled. I turned away again, and started heading away from the forest. Yes, that certainly was a nice snorlax. But it wouldn't have been right to catch it after what had happened. I sighed. A snorlax would have made a great addition to my team.. but still, there'd be more opportunities later. Snorlaxes were rare, but I wasn't even a pokÃ©mon master yet. I still had my whole life ahead of me. There'd be plenty of pokÃ©mon to catch, and among them would be a snorlax that would be just right for me.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Eight, Chapter Ten  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Tailz the vulpix, Chazz the charizard, Potow the pidgeotto, Catafree the butterfree, Weedie the beedrill, Evy the vaporeon  
  
'Sand-Cloud!' I called. 'Sand-Cloud! Gelby! Where are you?'  
  
'Vulpix pix!'  
  
'Charrrr!'  
  
'Pidgeooo!'  
  
'Beee freee!'  
  
'Beedriiiill!'  
  
'Vaporeoooon!'  
  
My friends were nowhere in sight. I sighed. It was getting dark, and I didn't want to have to camp out without them. I'd been foolish to run off the way I had.. Mitch just made me so angry sometimes and Sand-Cloud should have known that I'd do something stupid if she said something like she did.  
  
'I don't think we're going to find them anytime soon,' I sighed.  
  
'Vul,' sighed Tailz.  
  
'Come on, let's just try for a bit longer,' I said. My pokÃ©mon nodded and kept calling out. 'Sand-Cloud! Gelby! It's me Janet! Come on, where are you guys!?'  
  
There was a rustling in the bushes.  
  
'Ahh,' I sighed with relief. 'Finally! Come on, I'm over here!'  
  
Then there was a sound like thunder, and the ground shook violently. Either Sand-Cloud and Gelby had put on a lot of weight in the past few hours, or that wasn't my friends running towards me.  
  
'Snorrrrrlax!'  
  
'Oh no,' I said. The huge pokÃ©mon burst through the bushes and smiled down at me. I had to laugh. 'No Snorlax, I wasn't calling for you! I'm still looking for my friends!'  
  
'S.. snor..' said the snorlax, its shoulders slumped.  
  
'Oh.. well.. I'm happy to see you!' I said. It smiled and took a few steps closer to me. I smiled up at the big pokÃ©mon. If it had so excitedly run up to me just then.. then maybe, just maybe.. 'Snorlax.. I was just wondering.. if you want that is.. if you'd like to come with us.'  
  
'Snor,' said the snorlax, scratching its head.  
  
'If you came with us, I could be your trainer,' I said. 'Like how Tailz, Catafree, Chazz, Potow, Weedie and Evy are my pokÃ©mon friends.. you could be one too. And you could help me win badges by competing against powerful pokÃ©mon. But only if you want to, of course.'  
  
'Snorlax!' said the snorlax, breaking into a smile. 'Snorlax lax!'  
  
'Is that a yes, then?' I smiled.  
  
'Snor!' nodded the snorlax. I smiled.  
  
'In that case.. I'd better give you a name,' I said. 'I won't register you as my pokÃ©mon yet because that'll mean you'll have to go to my PC, and I want to introduce you to my friends. But I think you need a name.. hmm.. a snorlax name.. how about.. "Slothie"?'  
  
'Snorlax?' asked the snorlax, tilting its head.  
  
'It means you sleep a lot,' I smiled.  
  
'Snorlax lax!' laughed the snorlax. I smiled.  
  
'Slothie it is then?' I asked. The snorlax nodded. 'OK then! Now Slothie, we'd really appreciate it if you could help me look for my friends..'  
  
'Snorlax,' nodded Slothie. 'Snor.. LAAAAAAX!'  
  
I had to laugh. I was so happy that the snorlax I'd wanted so much was finally part of my team!  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Eight, Chapter Eleven  
  
Characters: Janet Harri, Slothie the snorlax  
  
'Keep the noise down, will you!? It's getting late! PokÃ©mon are trying to sleep at the PokÃ©mon Centre!'  
  
I turned around. A Nurse Joy was standing before me, hands on hips, not looking very happy.  
  
'I'm sorry,' I said. 'I was trying to find my friends. I have to find them before nightfall or I'll never find them!'  
  
'It already is nightfall!' said Nurse Joy. 'Come in to the PokÃ©mon Centre, someone in there might have seen them. But keep the noise down! That snorlax is extremely loud!'  
  
'Snor..' said Slothie innocently.  
  
'Have you seen my friends, Nurse Joy?' I asked. 'They're a yellow yoshi about this tall.. and a Pallet pikachu who's really short..'  
  
'A yoshi?' Nurse Joy asked. 'And a Pallet pikachu? Well yes, I have seen your friends. Yoshis aren't common in these parts so she certainly stood out. Your friends are in the PokÃ©mon Centre. See, if you'd just come in instead of shouting like that you would have found them by now!'  
  
'Um, sorry,' I said. I wasn't sure what else to say. I followed Nurse Joy into the big building to our left. As I got to the door, my friends rushed towards me.  
  
'Janet!' said Sand-Cloud. 'Are you crazy or what!? Why'd you run off like that!?'  
  
As I was about to answer, Gelby cut in; 'Janet, are you aware that there's a very large snorlax behind you?'  
  
I laughed. 'Guys, I'd like you to meet Slothie!'  
  
'Snorlax!' said Slothie. It bent down and picked up my two friends, hugging them. I laughed hysterically.  
  
'Uh Janet, it's very nice that you've caught a new pokÃ©mon, but can you tell it to PUT US DOWN!?' said Sand-Cloud, not sounding very comfortable.  
  
'Slothie, you can put them down now,' I smiled. The snorlax did so, a huge grin on its face. 'I think it's about time I registered you as my pokÃ©mon. Now don't be scared, you're going to be transported to another place. But first I need to put you in a pokÃ©ball, is that OK?'  
  
'Snorlax,' nodded Slothie. I took out a pokÃ©ball and held it out. Slothie willingly allowed itself to be pulled inside. I registered the snorlax as a pokÃ©mon I had caught, and the pokÃ©ball was transferred away. I turned to my friends.  
  
'See, I told you I'd get a good pokÃ©mon,' I smiled.  
  
'That's great Janet,' said Sand-Cloud. 'But next time, try not to run off like that. Anyway you'd better come get some rest, we've got a long few weeks ahead of us. The closest gym is actually really far away, and it's going to take a while to get there. So come on.'  
  
I followed my friends into the PokÃ©Centre, happy to get some rest after the hard day's work of capturing Slothie.  
  
~Janet~  
  
END OF PART EIGHT 


	11. Part Nine

Part Nine, Chapter One  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Mitch Orien, Seaworth the seel, Slothie the snorlax, Catafree the butterfree  
  
We'd been travelling for a few weeks, on our way to the gym in a city called Millton. I had seven badges now, out of the fifteen I needed to enter my continent's PokÃ©mon League. One more, and I'd be more than halfway. I had no idea what to expect at the PokÃ©mon League, but I couldn't wait to get there. Some day, I'd make it. And I would become a pokÃ©mon master, no matter what.  
  
We were almost at Millton when who should turn up but my rival, Mitch. I hadn't seen him for ages, and I was interested in seeing how strong his pokÃ©mon were. I also wanted to test out my pokÃ©mon, to get into practice for my gym battle.  
  
'You up for a battle, Mitch?' I smiled.  
  
'Sure I am,' said Mitch. 'As long as you're not scared to lose.'  
  
'Ha!' I said. 'We'll see about that. Go, Seaworth!'  
  
'Ooh a seel, I'm so scared,' said Mitch sarcastically. 'See to it, Magneton!'  
  
This looked bad already. Seaworth wasn't very strong, even I had to admit that. And against an electric pokÃ©mon.. still, I had to at least give it a try.  
  
'Seaworth, don't let it scare you!' I said. 'Growl attack!'  
  
'Seeeel,' growled Seaworth, narrowing its eyes at Magneton.  
  
'Magneton, thundershock!' said Mitch.  
  
'Magneton,' said the pokÃ©mon. Its three magnets clustered together and sent out an electric shock. Seaworth cried out in pain.  
  
'Seaworth, don't give up!' I said. 'Try headbutt!'  
  
'Seel!' said Seaworth, jumping at Magneton head-first. Its sharp horn did a lot of damage to the electric pokÃ©mon, but Seaworth was still losing.  
  
'Magneton, thundershock!'  
  
'Seaworth, headbutt!'  
  
'Keep that thundershock coming!'  
  
It was no use. Seaworth simply couldn't compare to Magneton's electricity.  
  
'Come back, Seaworth,' I said, holding out my pokÃ©ball. 'You did your best. OK, let's take this magneton down! Go.. Slothie!'  
  
Mitch blinked as my snorlax appeared. I smiled. It was impressive, wasn't it?  
  
'Magneton, thunderbolt! Show that fat slob who's boss!'  
  
Slothie narrowed its eyes at Mitch, unhappy about being called a "fat slob".  
  
'Don't you dare insult my pokÃ©mon like that!' I said. 'Slothie, headbutt!'  
  
'Snor!' said Slothie angrily. It charged at Magneton and slammed its big head into it. The electric pokÃ©mon went flying. Mitch gasped and recalled his magneton.  
  
'You got lucky,' he muttered. 'That snorlax may be big enough to beat up my magneton, but size won't matter with this pokÃ©mon! I choose.. Hitmonlee!'  
  
Mitch threw his pokÃ©ball and a weird pokÃ©mon with legs that looked like they were made of springs appeared. It had no mouth, but its menacing eyes sure made it look formidable.  
  
'Slothie, headbutt!' I called. Slothie ran towards the hitmonlee.  
  
'Hitmonlee, hi jump kick!' shouted Mitch. His pokÃ©mon leapt into the air and kicked Slothie directly in the forehead, right before it was about to use its headbutt. My snorlax cried out and fell backwards. It shook itself off and stood up.  
  
'That's it Slothie!' I said encouragingly. 'Don't give up! Use another headbutt!'  
  
'Hitmonlee! Double kick!'  
  
'Hitmonleeeeee!' shouted Hitmonlee, kicking Slothie with immense strength. Slothie fell back, and just as it was about to get up, Hitmonlee slammed it with a second kick. Slothie was knocked out! I gasped.  
  
'Slothie, return!' I called.  
  
'That hitmonlee isn't so strong,' said Sand-Cloud spitefully. I turned to her.  
  
'It knocked out Slothie,' I said. 'And you know how strong Slothie normally is..'  
  
'Yes, but that's because Slothie normally doesn't have any disadvantages,' said Sand-Cloud. 'But fighting-types are super-effective against normal pokÃ©mon. Those attacks didn't need much strength to do that damage.'  
  
I nodded. 'We'll show him then. I choose you, Catafree!'  
  
'Fleee!' hummed my butterfree as it appeared from its pokÃ©ball.  
  
'OK Catafree!' I said. 'Psybeam!'  
  
'Beee FREE!' shouted Catafree. It let out a huge multi-coloured beam from its antennae. Hitmonlee squealed and fell straight backwards.  
  
'Hitmonlee return!' said Mitch angrily. 'You're just lucky my magneton already got knocked out.. it'd beat that bug in an instant! Now I'm going to have to leave that up to.. Growlithe!'  
  
'Catafree, you can beat it!' I said. 'Sleep powder!'  
  
Unfortunately, Growlithe was too fast for Catafree and managed to avoid the attack. It fired an ember at my butterfree which did considerable damage.  
  
'Catafree, confusion!' I said. The psychic attack hit easily, and Growlithe became confused. It started chasing its tail, in true canine fashion. Mitch stared at it, shocked.  
  
'You dumb dog, get in there and FIGHT!' he yelled.  
  
'Growlithe, growlithe!' said his pokÃ©mon excitedly, continuing to chase its tail. Sand-Cloud, Gelby and I all started laughing. Catafree giggled to itself.  
  
'Rrr.. Growlithe return!' called Mitch. 'OK, you asked for it! Go.. Farfetch'd!'  
  
'Catafree, psybeam!' I called. Catafree hit Farfetch'd with its psybeam, but my butterfree was getting weak, and its attacks weren't very strong anymore. I recalled my pokÃ©mon and thought about who to send out next.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Nine, Chapter Two  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Mitch Orien, Evy the vaporeon, Pikapi the pikachu, Tailz the vulpix  
  
'I choose.. Evy!' I decided finally.  
  
'That vaporeon looks pathetic,' commented Mitch. 'Alright Farfetch'd, peck!'  
  
'Fetch'd!' shouted his pokÃ©mon, slamming its beak into Evy.  
  
'Evy, bite!' I said. My vaporeon sunk its teeth into the flying pokÃ©mon.  
  
'Fetch'd farfetch'd!!' squawked Farfetch'd.  
  
'Farfetch'd, swords dance!' said Mitch. His pokÃ©mon calmed itself down, and threw its stick up into the air. It started spinning it around its body, building up strength.  
  
'Evy, quick attack!' I said. Evy ran in and attacked Mitch's pokÃ©mon, but didn't seem to do a lot of damage.  
  
'Farfetch'd, peck!' said Mitch. His powered-up pokÃ©mon pecked Evy. It was a critical hit, and my vaporeon fainted!  
  
'Oh no,' I breathed. 'OK, Evy return! Go Pikapi!'  
  
'Dammit, I knew she'd do that!' said Mitch. 'Farfetch'd, return! Go teach that rat a lesson, Onix!'  
  
I gulped. Now I was in big trouble. Not only could Pikapi not use its best attacks on Onix, but the only other pokÃ©mon I had was Tailz.. who stood no chance against the huge rock serpent.  
  
'Pikapi, swift,' I suggested.  
  
'Chuu!' said Pikapi, leaping into the air and sending out a burst of stars. The onix barely felt it.  
  
'Ha ha ha,' said Mitch. 'Onix, earthquake.'  
  
His onix roared and leapt into the air. Pikapi's eyes opened wide. The gigantic pokÃ©mon slammed back onto the ground. The earth shook, and Pikapi collapsed. My little pikachu was nothing against ground-type attacks. It had to learn thunder, and fast. Then I could evolve it and it would at least stand a chance against pokÃ©mon like onix. I sighed and brought Pikapi back to its pokÃ©ball.  
  
'Tailz, it's up to you,' I said, and looked down. But my vulpix was nowhere in sight. 'Uh.. Tailz?'  
  
'Vu.. vul....' I heard it murmur. It was cowering behind my legs, shivering with fear. I looked at it sympathetically and bent down.  
  
'It's OK Tailz,' I said. 'You don't have to battle that onix. I'm sorry, I should have thought about it before telling you to go out there. Come on, come here.'  
  
I pulled the baby vulpix into my arms. I had to keep reminding myself that Tailz wasn't just any vulpix.. it was young, and it was scared of battling a lot of the time. Especially big, strong pokÃ©mon like onix. And after seeing that earthquake attack, I was foolish to even consider sending Tailz out to battle it.  
  
'Alright, you win,' I said. I hated admitting defeat to Mitch, but sometimes there was no alternative.  
  
'That's pathetic,' said Mitch. 'You've got to ditch that vulpix, Janet. It's losing you too many battles.'  
  
'"Ditch it"?' I said angrily. 'How can you even suggest such a thing!? PokÃ©mon aren't just there to be used in battle, Mitch! They're meant to be companions!'  
  
'Oh, now we're going to go into the "pokÃ©mon are my friends!" speech, are we?' said Mitch, rolling his eyes. 'Save it for someone who cares. Onix, return! I'm getting out of here.'  
  
I really couldn't believe that guy's attitude. It was no wonder he was my rival, the way he treated his pokÃ©mon. He'd sure learn a thing or two when he made it to the PokÃ©mon League.. not that he ever would, of course.  
  
'Come on Janet,' said Gelby. 'Millton's just up the road. Don't let Mitch bother you.. you need to concentrate on this gym battle.'  
  
I nodded. 'Let's get going.'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Nine, Chapter Three  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Nurse Joy, Bybee the rattata  
  
'Have you just been battling Terri?' Joy asked as she handed me my pokÃ©balls.  
  
'Terri?' I asked, confused.  
  
'I'll take that as a no,' smiled Joy. 'Terri's the gym leader here in Millton. She uses ground-type pokÃ©mon, and she's pretty tough. Are you here to battle her?'  
  
I nodded. 'I've already got seven badges..'  
  
'Seven?' Joy asked. 'My my, that's quite impressive for a girl your age. How long have you been a trainer?'  
  
'Umm... nearly a year,' I said.  
  
'You're doing well,' said Joy. 'You've got the potential to defeat Terri if you try hard enough. Pick your team carefully, though. Ground pokÃ©mon can be tricky.'  
  
I nodded and went to the PC to sort through my pokÃ©mon and decide which to use. I finally decided on a team of Tailz, Seaworth, Evy, Raus, Potow.. and the surprising choice of Bybee. Bybee was a rattata that I'd caught during the first few weeks of training. I'd relied on it to win me a lot of battles, but somehow I'd let some of my other pokÃ©mon steal its spotlight during the last few months. I wanted Bybee to get some more experience, and hopefully evolve into a raticate.  
  
So with my six pokÃ©mon and my friends, I entered the gym. A short girl was sitting at the far end of the room with a cubone. It was screaming its head off.. almost literally! Somehow it had gotten its skull headgear flipped around so that the eye holes were at the back and it couldn't see anything.  
  
'Cubey! Cubey just stay still!' said the girl. 'Come on Cubey, it'll be alright if you just hold still!'  
  
I took a step forward. The girl must have heard me, because she looked up.  
  
'Um.. can I help?' I asked. She paused, then nodded.  
  
'Can you try and hold my cubone down?' she asked. 'I need to spin its skull around but.. well I only have two hands.'  
  
I nodded and bent down. I held on to the struggling cubone tightly. It certainly was strong, but I managed to keep it still enough for the girl to carefully turn the skull around. The cubone blinked, then leapt into the girl's arms.  
  
'Cubone bone bone!' it said happily.  
  
'There now Cubey, that wasn't so bad was it?' the girl smiled. She looked at me. 'I can't thank you enough. Poor little Cubey, it must have been so scared.. oh, I'm sorry, I haven't introduced myself. I'm Terri, the Millton gym leader.'  
  
'I thought you were,' I said. 'My name's Janet, and I'm here to earn a badge.'  
  
'I would love to battle you, Janet,' said Terri. She stood up, still holding Cubey in her arms. 'Would you like to battle now?'  
  
'Yes please,' I smiled.  
  
'Alright, just go over to the other side of the stadium,' said Terri. 'We'll begin right away. My first pokÃ©mon shall be Sandslash. Please choose yours.'  
  
Terri certainly was being formal about it. Most gym leaders just sent out their pokÃ©mon, they didn't announce it.  
  
'I choose Bybee, the rattata,' I said with a smile. I dropped a pokÃ©ball to the ground and the little purple pokÃ©mon appeared.  
  
'Rrrrrrraaattataaa!' it squeaked. I grinned. I hadn't heard that for a while.  
  
'Very well,' said Terri. 'Let's begin. Sandslash, fury swipes!'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Nine, Chapter Four  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Terri the pokÃ©mon leader of ground, Bybee the rattata, Seaworth the seel, Tailz the vulpix, Potow the pidgeotto, Raus the venusaur  
  
'Sandslash, fury swipes!'  
  
The spiked pokÃ©mon ran towards Bybee and started scratching at it rapidly. Bybee cringed.  
  
'Ra.. taa..' it murmured.  
  
'Bybee, hyper fang!' I said. Bybee dug its big teeth into Sandslash. I smiled as the pokÃ©mon's energy drained rapidly. Hyper fang was a gooood move!  
  
'Sandslash, dig!' said Terri.  
  
'Sandslash,' said her pokÃ©mon, drilling into the ground with its huge claws. Bybee looked around, confused.  
  
'Bybee, wait for it to reappear,' I said. 'You can't do anything yet.'  
  
'Rattata,' nodded Bybee. Suddenly Sandslash burst out of the ground right underneath it, sending it into the air. 'Rattataaaaa!'  
  
'Oh no!' I said. 'Bybee, quick! Hyper fang!'  
  
'RattaTAAA!' growled Bybee. Instead of thumping to the ground and hurting itself, it managed to land on top of Sandslash and bite it hard. The sandslash spun around, then fainted.  
  
'Yeah!' I said. 'Go Bybee!'  
  
'Well done Janet,' said Terri. 'Sandslash return. I choose.. Nidoqueen!'  
  
This pokÃ©mon looked tough. I decided to call Bybee back and try a different pokÃ©mon.  
  
'Bybee return. Go for it, Seaworth!'  
  
'Nidoqueen, body slam!' said Terri.  
  
'Nido!' said her pokÃ©mon, launching its bulk at Seaworth. It slammed down on my seel, hurting it badly.  
  
'Seaworth!' I cried. 'Are you OK?'  
  
'Seel seel,' nodded Seaworth. It may have been lying, but its determination would give it strength.  
  
'Alright then.. aurora beam!' I said.  
  
'Seel!' said Seaworth. A colourful beam formed at the horn on its head, and blasted outwards. It hit the Nidoqueen. The large blue pokÃ©mon fell over. I smiled. Seaworth may not have been all that strong, but aurora beam always pulled through.  
  
'Nidoqueen, get up!' said Terri. Her pokÃ©mon shook its head and stood up again. 'Time for earthquake!'  
  
Oh no.  
  
'Vulpix!' cried Tailz, leaping into my arms.  
  
'S.. seel?' asked Seaworth, as the ground started to shake. 'SEEL!'  
  
My pokÃ©mon fainted. I cringed. 'Seaworth, return! Go, Potow!'  
  
'Ah, good choice,' nodded Terri. 'Alright Nidoqueen, scratch!'  
  
Nidoqueen ran towards Potow with its claws outstretched. It scratched my pidgeotto, not doing much damage. Without being able to use its strong ground moves like earthquake against Potow, Nidoqueen wasn't very strong.  
  
'Potow, wing attack!' I said.  
  
'Pidgeooo!' said Potow. It flew in to Nidoqueen and slapped it with its wings. It did a lot of damage. I was quite impressed.. I didn't know Potow was that strong!  
  
'Nidoqueen return!' called Terri. 'Go, Rhyhorn!'  
  
This was going to be tricky. Rhyhorn's ground moves wouldn't hurt Potow, but if it had any good rock moves I'd be in real trouble. And Potow's attacks wouldn't do much damage against its rock hard armour. I'd have to switch pokÃ©mon, there was no other choice.  
  
'Potow return!' I called. 'You did well. Now, go Raus!'  
  
'Bad move,' smiled Terri. 'Grass pokÃ©mon may be good against ground types, but don't forget your venusaur's second type.'  
  
Oh yeah.. whoops.  
  
'Raus can handle anything!' I said. 'Raus, razor leaf!'  
  
'Venu.. saur!' said Raus. A gust of leaves burst out from the flower on its back. They slashed into Rhyhorn. The rock pokÃ©mon looked in great pain.. Raus was more powerful, that was obvious. Even if Rhyhorn did have some ground attacks..  
  
'Rhyhorn!' said Terri. 'Earthquake!'  
  
Tailz whimpered.  
  
'It's OK Tailz,' I said. 'You're fine. And Raus can handle it.'  
  
Raus could handle it, but not very well. It lost a great deal of energy.. being a poison type, it was naturally weak against ground attacks. But even so, its level was high, and its grass attacks would still do a lot of damage to that rhyhorn.  
  
'Raus, razor leaf!' I said. That was all it took to knock out the rhyhorn. I smiled as Terri called her pokÃ©mon back. With Raus on my side, this battle was going to be easy. That venusaur had won me countless battles, and it wasn't going to let me down.  
  
'Marowak!' said Terri. 'Your turn!'  
  
The cubone in her arms started cheering. Marowak turned back and smiled.  
  
'Marow,' it said. Terri smiled.  
  
'Marowak, bone club!'  
  
'Saur!' cried Raus as Marowak beat it with the bone club in its hand.  
  
'Bonemerang!'  
  
This was bad. I'd forgotten that cubones and marowaks learnt two exclusive ground-type moves. And powerful ones at that. Raus was getting really badly hurt out there. Time to switch pokÃ©mon..  
  
'Raus, return!' I called.  
  
'Saur,' growled Raus. It fought against the beam of my pokÃ©ball and eventually the beam disappeared. I sighed. Raus wasn't going to return. It had a habit of refusing to go back in its pokÃ©ball during a battle.. there was nothing I could do. I had to let it battle. I hoped it wouldn't hurt itself too much..  
  
'OK Raus, we'll do it your way,' I said. 'Razor leaf!  
  
'Venusaur!' said Raus.  
  
'Marowak!' cried Marowak, falling over backwards.  
  
'Marowak return!' called Terri. Well, that was quicker than I'd expected. Raus's razor leaf was incredibly strong.. and her ground pokÃ©mon were no match for it. I smiled and wondered what pokÃ©mon she'd send out next. 'I didn't think it would come down to this but I'm afraid I have no choice. I'm sorry if I hurt your venusaur but I'm going to have to use my best pokÃ©mon. Alright.. it's your turn! Cubey!!'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Nine, Chapter Five  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Terri the pokÃ©mon leader of ground, Cubey the cubone, Raus the venusaur, Tailz the vulpix  
  
'Cubey!?' I exclaimed. The little cubone leapt out of Terri's arms and bounded into the battlefield.  
  
'That's right,' smiled Terri. 'Don't underestimate the little guy, it's more powerful than you think. I meant it when I said it's my best pokÃ©mon. I always leave it to last, so most don't get to witness its power. If you can't beat Cubey, you should be proud that you've at least come this far. Now.. let's start.'  
  
I nodded. I wasn't sure what to expect of this little cubone. My friend Kew claimed that her best pokÃ©mon was her charmander, Zing. And I was proud of all my unevolved pokÃ©mon. Maybe it really was possible to train unevolved pokÃ©mon so well that their powers exceeded their evolutions. I'd always planned on evolving all my pokÃ©mon.. but maybe.. that wasn't necessarily the best way to do things.  
  
'Cubey, let's start off with bone club!'  
  
'Cubone bone!' said the pokÃ©mon. It leapt towards Raus and came down slamming the bone into my venusaur's forehead.  
  
'Saur!' cried Raus.  
  
'This is just the beginning of Cubey's power,' smiled Terri. 'Cubey, bonemerang!'  
  
'Bone!!' shouted Cubey. It spun the bone with all its might. It hit Raus multiple times before turning back and landing safely in Cubey's hand. It held the bone up triumphantly. 'Cubone!'  
  
'S.. saur...' said Raus weakly. I gulped.  
  
'Raus, razor leaf..' I said.  
  
'Ve...nu.. SAUR!!' roared Raus. Its best attack did a lot of damage to the little cubone, but the ground pokÃ©mon wasn't giving up yet.  
  
'Let's finish this, Cubey,' said Terri. 'Fissure now!'  
  
'Cubone bone bone bone CUBONE!!'  
  
The ground started to shake.  
  
'Vuuuuulpix!' cried Tailz, shaking with fear. I hugged my vulpix.  
  
'It's OK Tailz, it's OK,' I said. But it wasn't OK. This attack wasn't like earthquake, it was worse. A lot worse. The ground started to split up, and Raus fell. Its eyes closed. The ground was still once more, and the dust that had swept the room started to clear. My venusaur was well and truly knocked out. Things were looking bad.  
  
'Raus return,' I called. I didn't know what to do. Evy wouldn't be able to handle Cubey, I could see that now. It was a water type, but didn't yet know any water moves.. so it had no real advantage over the cubone. There was, of course, one other alternative, but no. No, I couldn't do that. Not against a ground type, not against Cubey. There was only one choice here. I had to give up. I opened my mouth to speak, when Tailz leapt to the ground.  
  
'Vulpix pix,' it said. It was shaky. It was still scared.. but it knew how much I wanted to win this. It knew that I'd nearly won, and there was only a little bit more work to do. But.. Tailz? Could my baby vulpix really have the power to beat Cubey?  
  
'Tailz, don't,' I said.  
  
'Vul,' said Tailz. It stepped into the arena. I bit my lip. This would be hard.  
  
'Are you sure you want your vulpix to battle?' Terri asked. 'It only has four tails.. its power isn't very high.'  
  
'I know,' I said. I looked at Tailz. This was an important decision. Would I let Tailz battle against this ground-type legend.. or would I crush its hopes by calling off the match? I realised that, even if Tailz lost the match, it would learn more by battling than by giving up. I didn't want to teach my pokÃ©mon to give up, I wanted to teach them to have the courage to battle. And so.. there was only one option I could take. 'Tailz.. let's go. Ember attack.'  
  
'Vulpix,' smiled Tailz. 'Vul.. pix!'  
  
A ball of fire leapt from its mouth and hit Cubey. It didn't do a lot of damage. Maybe fire attacks weren't the best way to go.  
  
'Cubey, bone club!' said Terri.  
  
'Vuuuul!' Tailz cried as Cubey whacked Tailz with its bone. Against fire types, those ground moves were devastating. But Tailz could do it if it tried hard enough. I knew it could.  
  
'Tailz, quick attack!' I said. Tailz hit Cubey before it could get another attack in.  
  
'Cubey, bone club!' said Terri. As I saw Cubey hit Tailz with its bone again, I realised that I'd have to stop these attacks doing so much damage. Somehow, I had to increase Tailz's power.  
  
'Tailz,' I said. 'Confuse ray.'  
  
'Vulpix,' said Tailz. It narrowed its eyes. 'Vulpix vul...'  
  
'Cubone?' asked Cubey. It blinked a few times. I didn't know whether the attack worked or not; we'd have to wait and see..  
  
'Cubey, bonemerang!' said Terri.  
  
'Cubone bone!' said Cubey. It threw its bone at Tailz. Just as bone and vulpix were about to connect, the bone turned around early and slammed back into Cubey. 'Cubone!!'  
  
The cubone fell over, the strength of its own attack hurting it greatly.  
  
'Tailz, quick attack!' said Tailz. Tailz charged at Cubey and sent it flying into the air. It dropped its bone and Tailz caught it in its mouth. I smiled. No more bone club or bonemerang for Cubey!  
  
'Tailz,' I smiled. 'Try a.. bone club!'  
  
Sand-Cloud and Gelby laughed. Terri looked shocked. Cubey looked scared. Tailz smiled. With the bone in its jaws, it ran over to Cubey and leapt at it. It spun around and hit the cubone with its own bone. The cubone collapsed. I smiled. Tailz stepped back and stood up proudly, leaving the bone on the ground. Cubey tried to get up, but couldn't. Instead, it started bawling its eyes out.  
  
'Vulpix,' nodded Tailz with a smile. And its tails started glowing. I grinned as I saw another tail emerge.. the fan of tails on my vulpix was starting to look full now. Only one more tail to go, and it would be as strong as any adult vulpix.  
  
'Oh Cubey!' cried Terri, rushing over to her pokÃ©mon. She picked it up and tried to calm it down. 'It's OK Cubey, it's OK! You'll win next time! Oh Cubey, please stop crying!'  
  
She hugged the cubone but it wouldn't stop crying. I had to smile. Tailz's victory certainly had been outstanding. Terri walked over to me with the wailing cubone still in her arms.  
  
'That was a great battle, Janet,' she said. She handed me a small object. A badge. 'You deserve this badge. I'm very proud of Tailz, too. Together, I think you two can make it as pokÃ©mon masters.'  
  
'Thanks,' I smiled. I picked up my vulpix and hugged it. 'Tailz may have been the runt of its litter, but it's the best vulpix I've ever met. I'd never wish for any other.'  
  
'Vulpix,' smiled Tailz. It licked me on the face, and I laughed. I was so proud of it. It had earned me my eighth badge, and it had earned itself an extra tail and more confidence in itself.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Nine, Chapter Six  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Tailz the vulpix, Raus the venusaur  
  
After healing my pokÃ©mon, we left Millton and kept walking. None of us knew where the closest gym was, so we just headed down the road with no particular goal. I was proud of the day's achievements. I couldn't stop looking at my eight badges and Tailz's five tails. I couldn't wait to find a new opponent to test out Tailz's new power.  
  
But soon it got dark, and with no PokÃ©mon Centres in sight we had to camp out for the night. Tailz provided us with a nice campfire for a few hours, and then we all went to bed (by Gelby's command, of course).  
  
'Vul! Vulpix vul!'  
  
I rubbed my eyes and sat up. I couldn't see Tailz anywhere.. what was going on? 'Tailz? Tailz, what's wrong?'  
  
'Vul! Vul!'  
  
I got up and followed the sound of my vulpix. Before long I found it. It was trapped in the bushes, wrapped in some kind of strange vine. It didn't look too pleased with itself.  
  
'Tailz!' I exclaimed. 'What happened to you?'  
  
'Vuuul! Vulpix!' wailed Tailz. I sighed and walked over to it. I tried to unwrap the vines, but they just seemed to get tighter. Something strange was going on here. But Tailz was getting scared, and I was getting worried. What would I do if I couldn't get Tailz out of there? Angrily, I pulled at the vines as hard as I could.  
  
'Tangelllll!'  
  
'Huh!?' I exclaimed.  
  
'Vuuuulpix!' squealed Tailz.  
  
'These aren't vines!' I said. 'This is a pokÃ©mon!'  
  
As I stepped back I saw that the "vines" were all part of a very strange- looking pokÃ©mon. It seemed to be one big ball of tangles, with two little pinkish feet sticking out the bottom. It had two big eyes in the middle of all those vines, and I was surprised I hadn't noticed them at first.  
  
'Tangela,' I breathed. I knew about this pokÃ©mon. It was rare, and not commonly known by trainers because of that. I didn't know anyone who trained or even owned a tangela. But the little vine pokÃ©mon looked so cute! I knew then and there that I had to catch it. But first, I had to get Tailz out of its grasp. 'Alright.. Raus, I choose you!'  
  
I threw a pokÃ©ball and my big venusaur appeared.  
  
'Raus, vine whip that tangela!' I said. 'We've got to free Tailz!'  
  
'Venusaur!' said Raus. It extended its own vines and started hitting Tangela with them. The pokÃ©mon frowned. It dropped Tailz and took a few steps towards Raus.  
  
'Tan!' it said, and started showing off its own vine whip. But it was no match for Raus. After picking up Tailz, I told Raus to keep vine whipping the tangela, and before long it had managed to tire it out completely. The ball of knots sat down, puffing.  
  
'That's enough Raus,' I said. 'Time to catch this tangela! PokÃ©ball, go!'  
  
I threw a pokÃ©ball at the tangela. It extended a vine and smashed the ball in half! I frowned and pulled out another one.  
  
'Vulpix,' said Tailz. It stuck its snout into my pocket and pulled out a differently coloured ball in its mouth. I smiled, remembering the greatballs I'd bought a few weeks back when trying to catch Slothie.  
  
'Thanks Tailz,' I said. 'Go, greatball!'  
  
I threw the greatball. This one managed to get the tangela. It sucked it in and shook around on the ground. It didn't shake for very long before the light went out. With a smile, I picked up the greatball. Tangela was mine!  
  
'Alright!' I said. I named my new pokÃ©mon "Knotty", and the greatball disappeared. 'Thanks for that Raus, you did well. Come on, let's get back to the others. They should be up by now. We've got another day of traveling ahead of us, we'd best get started as soon as we can.'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Nine, Chapter Seven  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Tailz the vulpix, Evy the vaporeon, Bybee the rattata  
  
'Now here's someone I haven't seen for a while!'  
  
I turned around, and there was my old friend Josh the bug catcher!  
  
'Hi Josh,' I smiled. 'How've you been?'  
  
'Good,' said Josh. 'You should see how well my venonat's going! I think it's going to evolve soon!'  
  
'I know how we can speed it up,' I said, taking out a pokÃ©ball.  
  
'A battle,' said Josh. 'You're on! Let's make it three on three.'  
  
'Sounds good. Go, Tailz!' I said, nodding to my vulpix. It stepped forward.  
  
'In that case, I choose.. Butterfree!' said Josh. Well fine, don't choose the venonat..  
  
'Tailz, flamethrower!' I said.  
  
'VulPIX!' said Tailz, opening its mouth and letting out a huge ray of fire. I had to smile. Since my vulpix had grown its fifth tail, its fire power was amazing!  
  
'Free!' cried Butterfree.  
  
'Butterfree, don't let its fire attacks scare you,' said Josh. 'Psybeam now!'  
  
'Beee!' said Butterfree. It shot a psybeam at Tailz, knocking it back.  
  
'Tailz, another flamethrower!' I said. 'Keep it up!'  
  
'Vuuuul!' said Tailz, breathing fire all over Butterfree.  
  
'Butterfree, wing attack!' said Josh. His butterfree flew down to Tailz and hit it with its wings. It seemed to do a lot of damage to my little pokÃ©mon.  
  
'OK Tailz, you'd better come back,' I said. Tailz nodded and bounded back to me. 'Now I choose.. Evy!'  
  
'This should be easy,' said Josh. 'Butterfree, psybeam!'  
  
'Evy, aurora beam!'  
  
Evy's aurora beam hurt Josh's flying bug badly. He decided it was time to call it back, and held out his pokÃ©ball.  
  
'Alright, Venonat! I choose you!' he said, throwing his next pokÃ©ball. He was right, that venonat did look tough.  
  
'Keep at it Evy,' I said. 'Bite attack!'  
  
'Poreon!' said Evy, leaping at Venonat and biting it hard.  
  
'Venonat, stun spore now!'  
  
'Venonat!' said the cute bug pokÃ©mon. It leapt into the air and sprinkled green powder over Evy. Evy sniffed, sneezed, then fell to the ground.  
  
'Evy, try and get up!' I said.  
  
'Va.. por...' moaned Evy.  
  
'Evy return!' I called. 'I choose... Bybee!'  
  
My little rattata appeared. I wasn't sure if it could beat Venonat, plus Josh's next pokÃ©mon.. but I was willing to let it try.  
  
'Bybee, hyper fang!' I said.  
  
'Rrrrrrrrattata!' said Bybee. It charged at Venonat and bit it, draining a lot of energy.  
  
'Say "ta ta", rattata!' said Josh. 'Venonat, use leech life!'  
  
I gasped as Venonat started sucking Bybee's energy. The attack was surprisingly strong, and Bybee was getting really weak. To add to that, Venonat now looked as healthy as it had when it entered the battle. I sighed. My little rattata couldn't beat that tough bug.  
  
'Bybee return,' I said. 'You did well. I'm proud of you.'  
  
'Guess I win, for once,' said Josh. I smiled. He was right.. I did always seem to beat him. Well, at least Bybee had got a bit of training, and so had.. his venonat! We all stared wide-eyed as the little fluffy bug started glowing. Wings sprouted from its back and it grew into a giant moth creature. I gulped. I didn't like the look of that thing.  
  
'Wow, Venona-- Venomoth!' said Josh. 'You evolved!'  
  
He rushed over and hugged his newly evolved pokÃ©mon. I shuddered. How could such a cute pokÃ©mon like Venonat turn into that hideous creature? I found myself hoping that my own venonat Palido would never evolve..  
  
'Well, we'd better get going,' I said, not wanting to stay with the venomoth any longer. Josh nodded.  
  
'See you later, Janet!' he said. I waved, and we continued on down the road.  
  
~Janet~  
  
Part Nine, Chapter Eight  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu  
  
We stayed at a PokÃ©mon Centre that night and headed out again the next day. I was hoping to train my pokÃ©mon some more that day, rather than just walking aimlessly. However it wasn't long until I saw another familiar trainer... and a familiar pokÃ©mon too! It was my old friend Allin and his talking zapdos, Spark. I hadn't seen them for ages!  
  
'Allin!' I called. He turned around, and smiled.  
  
'Hi Janet,' he said. 'I was wondering whether I'd see you again.'  
  
'Me too,' I said. 'It's good to see you. You too, Spark.'  
  
'Spark, you remember Janet don't you?' Allin asked. The small thunder bird nodded.  
  
'Spark has good remembery,' he said. We all laughed.  
  
'So where are you heading?' Allin asked.  
  
'I don't really know,' I said. 'Do you know where the closest gym is?'  
  
'Probably the one I just game from,' said Allin. 'It's in a place called Scrap Town.'  
  
'Scrap Town?' I said. 'What kind of stupid name for a town is that?'  
  
Allin smiled. 'I dunno, but all the towns around here seem to have pretty stupid names.'  
  
'Good point,' I said. 'So I guess if I head there, you won't be coming with us..'  
  
Allin hesitated. 'Well I'd be glad to lead you there. Besides, I need a break from battling.. that was my tenth badge I earned back there!'  
  
'Tenth!?' I exclaimed. 'Aww, no fair, I only have eight.'  
  
'Oh well,' said Allin. 'You can earn another one in Scrap Town. Come on, we might as well get started. It could take a few weeks.'  
  
'Weeks?' Sand-Cloud moaned. 'Geeze, the things we do for Janet's badges..'  
  
'You know you like it,' I said. Sand-Cloud rolled her eyes. 'And hey, you haven't trained Slash for ages! We've got to find someone for you to battle with!'  
  
'Sand-Cloud.. you battle?' Allin asked.  
  
'I have a sandshrew,' said Sand-Cloud. 'I don't battle much, though.'  
  
'Heh, that's funny,' said Allin. 'Sand-Cloud.. sandshrew..'  
  
Gelby and I laughed. I couldn't believe we hadn't noticed that before!  
  
'Yes, that's very amusing,' said Sand-Cloud. 'But wait, there's more. It's called Slash and one day it'll be a sandslash.'  
  
We laughed some more.  
  
'And it'll learn the move slash!' Allin added.  
  
'OK, now that we're done bagging out my sandshrew, let's get going again,' said Sand-Cloud. We laughed and started to walk. I talked to Allin about what we'd each been doing since we'd seen each other last time. We'd both caught a lot of pokÃ©mon and earned a lot of badges. I couldn't wait to see his pokÃ©mon in a battle!  
  
And then, of course, along came a trainer!  
  
'My name's Dave and I'm a pokÃ©mon trainer! Any of you up for a battle?' he asked. Allin and I looked at each other.  
  
'Go on,' said Allin. I shook my head.  
  
'I want to see your pokÃ©mon!' I said. He rolled his eyes.  
  
'Oh alright,' he said, and took a step forward. 'Sure, I'll battle you.'  
  
'Let's go then!' said Dave. 'I choose.. Venusaur!'  
  
Allin took out a pokÃ©ball. I couldn't wait to see which pokÃ©mon he was going to use..  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Nine, Chapter Nine  
  
Characters: Janet, Sand-Cloud, Gelby, Tailz the vulpix, Dave, Allin, Spark the zapdos  
  
'I choose Ninetales!' said Allin. I smiled as an elegant, multi-tailed fox appeared from his pokÃ©ball. A ninetales!  
  
'Vulpix vulpix!' barked Tailz happily. I smiled and patted my vulpix on the head.  
  
'Don't think your fire type can beat Venusaur!' said Dave. 'Venusaur, charge up for solar beam!'  
  
I opened my eyes wide. Solar beam!? His venusaur was obviously at a high level. I wondered when Raus would learn that move..  
  
'Ninetales, don't let your guard down,' said Allin. 'It won't solar beam you if we can help it. Fire spin!'  
  
Dave cringed as Ninetales breathed a fiery rope over his pokÃ©mon, locking it in place. It tried to fire its solar beam but it was no use while the ninetales had its hold on the grass pokÃ©mon.  
  
'Venusaur, poison powder!' said Dave. It was still no use.. as long as Ninetales kept fire spinning, Venusaur couldn't attack.  
  
But finally the fire spin ended, and Ninetales stood puffing.  
  
'Now Venusaur, body slam!' said Dave.  
  
'Saur!' roared his pokÃ©mon, charging in and throwing Ninetales to the ground.  
  
'Ninetales, get up!' said Allin. 'Now, flamethrower!'  
  
'Niiiine!' said Ninetales.  
  
'Vulpix pix,' said Tailz, impressed, as the powerful fire attack was unleashed. It was too much for even a high level pokÃ©mon like Dave's. The venusaur fainted.  
  
'Venusaur return!' said Dave angrily. 'You'll regret that! Go Poliwhirl!'  
  
The cute purple frog pokÃ©mon appeared from his pokÃ©ball. How was Ninetales going to handle this?  
  
'Ninetales, return,' called Allin. OK, so that was how. 'I choose you, Megevolt!'  
  
I remembered this pokÃ©mon from last time.. it was Allin's voltorb.. except that now, it was an electrode. Dave narrowed his eyes at the sight of the electric pokÃ©mon.  
  
'Poliwhirl, double slap!' he said. Poliwhirl started slapping Megevolt with its big hands. It wasn't much use, as it just sent the big electric ball rolling away. Poliwhirl scratched its head, confused.  
  
'Megevolt, thunderbolt!' said Allin.  
  
'Electrode,' said the pokÃ©mon. Electricity built up around it and it blasted it at Poliwhirl. The pokÃ©mon blinked and fell over backwards.  
  
'Rrr.. Poliwhirl return!' said Dave. 'Show that punk who's boss.. Dugtrio!'  
  
'Hmm,' said Allin. 'Megevolt, tackle.'  
  
Megevolt rolled over to Dugtrio and crashed into it.  
  
'That won't win you this match,' said Dave. 'Dugtrio, dig!'  
  
Dugtrio pulled itself underground.. Megevolt couldn't attack it now. Or could it..?  
  
'Electrode, swift,' smiled Allin.  
  
'No!' gasped Dave as he heard the sound of his pokÃ©mon crying out in pain. I smiled. Swift was the only attack that could hit pokÃ©mon that were underground or high up in the air. It was a really useful attack, as all too many trainers were starting to learn.  
  
But even so, the attack didn't stop Dugtrio from hitting Megevolt with its dig attack. It burst out of the ground, spraying dirt all over the electrode.  
  
'Trode!' cried Megevolt.  
  
'Alright Megevolt, return!' called Allin. 'Go, Leviathon!'  
  
I recognised this pokÃ©mon, too. It was Allin's gyarados. I'd seen it battle against Mitch, and knew it was incredibly powerful.  
  
'Dugtrio, slash!' said Dave.  
  
'Leviathon hydro pump, quick!' said Allin. His gyarados opened its mouth and let out a huge blast of water. It covered the dugtrio, knocking it out in one hit.  
  
'Dugtrio return!' said Dave. 'I can't believe this! Go... Clefable!'  
  
'Leviathon be careful, these can be tricky,' said Allin.  
  
'You bet they can,' said Dave. 'Clefable, metronome!'  
  
We were all silent as Clefable started flicking its fingers from side to side. Everyone stared at the clefable, anxious to find out what attack would appear. With metronome, anything could happen..  
  
~Janet~  
  
Part Nine, Chapter Ten  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Dave, Allin, Spark the zapdos, Leviathon the gyarados  
  
Clefable's fingers twitched from side to side. Any moment now, any moment now and..  
  
'Clefable!' said the pokÃ©mon. And suddenly it shrunk down to a tiny size. I blinked.  
  
'Minimise!?' I exclaimed. 'Minimise!? There I was expecting explosion, or hyper beam, or even thunder at the least! And it goes ahead and uses minimise!?'  
  
Allin smiled. 'That move won't affect Leviathon. Hydro pump now!'  
  
'Gyaraaa!' roared Leviathon. It blasted water at Clefable. The pink fairy pokÃ©mon shook its head and frowned at the gyarados.  
  
'This time will be different!' said Dave. 'Clefable, metronome!'  
  
Click, click..  
  
'Fable!'  
  
Clefable stepped up to Leviathon, then turned around and shook its tail at it, slapping it slightly. There was a pause, then we all burst out laughing.  
  
'Tail whip!' laughed Allin. 'Oh, that was good! Leviathon, just dragon rage it.'  
  
Dave was getting angrier by the minute. As Leviathon's attack sent his pokÃ©mon flying, he started yelling.  
  
'You stupid pink pokÃ©mon, get up there and fight!' he shouted. 'Do metronome, and this time do it properly!!'  
  
'Clef.. Clefable!' said Clefable. Once again, its fingers started moving..  
  
And then suddenly.. the trees around us started shaking. Cold winds blew in on us, and Tailz shivered. Then out of nowhere, icy crystals slammed into Leviathon. The huge gyarados cried out and slammed down to the ground, out cold.  
  
'Oh...' breathed Allin.  
  
'Blizzard,' said Sand-Cloud, shaking her head.  
  
'Leviathon return!' called Allin. Dave laughed.  
  
'That's it Clefable!' he said. 'The power of random attacks proves worthwhile eventually!'  
  
'We'll see about that,' said Allin. 'Go, Machoke!'  
  
A strong-looking machoke appeared from his pokÃ©ball.  
  
'Hmph,' said Dave. 'Clefable, body slam!'  
  
Clefable threw its weight onto the machoke, but it hardly hurt the fighting pokÃ©mon at all.  
  
'Machoke,' said Allin. 'Use low kick!'  
  
'Maaachoke!' said his pokÃ©mon. It threw its leg into Clefable. The fairy pokÃ©mon cried out and fell to the ground.  
  
'Clefable return,' said Dave angrily. 'Go Gloom.'  
  
'Machoke, karate chop!' said Allin. His pokÃ©mon slammed its hand down on the little grass pokÃ©mon, causing a lot of damage.  
  
'Gloom, petal dance!' said Dave.  
  
'Gloom gloom!' said his pokÃ©mon. It started to spin around, and petals fell from the leaves on its head. The petals then swirled into the air and slammed into Machoke, similar to a razor leaf attack. Except in this case, the attack kept going. As long as Machoke kept attacking, Gloom continued to use petal dance.  
  
'Machoke, focus energy and then seismic toss!' said Allin.  
  
'Machoke!' said Machoke. It started building its energy. Just as it was about to go in for the seismic toss, Gloom started walking around looking confused.  
  
'What's it doing?' I asked.  
  
'That's a side effect of petal dance,' said Gelby. 'When the pokÃ©mon stops using it, it becomes confused.'  
  
I smiled. 'Weird. But hopefully that means Machoke can win this.'  
  
And it did. Machoke heaved Gloom into the air and threw it back down to the ground. Gloom was unable to protect itself, too confused to know what was going on. Dave angrily recalled his pokÃ©mon. The battle was nearly over. Just one more pokÃ©mon..  
  
'I choose Alakazam!' said Dave.  
  
'Alakazam!?' Allin exclaimed. 'Why didn't you send that out earlier?'  
  
'Ever heard of saving the best until last?' said Dave. 'Come on Alakazam, psychic attack!'  
  
'Ala!' said the pokÃ©mon. It held out its two spoons. They started to bend, and a psychic blast was sent straight to Machoke. It cried out, the force throwing it backwards.  
  
'Machoke return!' said Allin. He pulled out another pokÃ©ball. 'OK buddy, you're my last hope. Let's win this! Go.. Porygon!'  
  
'Woah,' I breathed as I saw the pokÃ©mon that appeared. It was an incredibly cute pink and blue pokÃ©mon with distinct edges. A porygon. I'd always wanted one of these!  
  
'Hmm,' said Dave. 'We can beat that cyberpunk. Alakazam, psychic!'  
  
'Porygon conversion!' said Allin.  
  
'Porygon,' said the pokÃ©mon. It didn't seem to do anything.. but when Alakazam's blast hit it, hardly any damage seemed to be done. Whatever conversion did, it did it well.  
  
'Porygon sharpen!' said Allin. Porygon's distinct edges became sharper, giving the porygon a much more scary look.  
  
'Alakazam, psybeam!' said Dave. Alakazam tried to attack, but again, the attack didn't do as much damage as expected.  
  
'Now Porygon,' said Allin. 'Tri attack!'  
  
'Pory,' said Porygon. Three waves containing fire, electric and ice attacks blasted out of the porygon and hit Alakazam.  
  
'Alaaaa!' cried the pokÃ©mon. Dave gasped.  
  
'Alakazam, no!' he said. 'You can't lose!'  
  
He rushed over to his pokÃ©mon to see if it was OK, but all was lost. He called it back to its pokÃ©ball and glared at Allin.  
  
'That porygon uses cheap tricks,' he said. 'You wouldn't have won if it wasn't for them.'  
  
'Well that's the beauty of pokÃ©mon battles, isn't it?' smiled Allin. 'It all depends on strategy.. which pokÃ©mon you send out. You're just lucky I didn't have to use Spark.'  
  
Dave looked at Spark nervously.  
  
'Yeah, Spark beat everyone!' chirped the zapdos, trying to sound tough. I laughed. Dave looked shocked.  
  
'Long story,' said Allin. 'I'd explain, but we've got to get to Scrap Town sometime soon..'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Nine, Chapter Eleven  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Allin, Spark the zapdos, Tailz the vulpix  
  
We checked in at the nearest pokÃ©mon centre and found out that Scrap Town was about two weeks' walk away. I decided it would be a good opportunity to train my pokÃ©mon and get them ready for the next gym battle. Allin told me that the Scrap Town gym leader used fighting pokÃ©mon, so I had to decide which pokÃ©mon to use against fighting types. I took Potow, knowing that flying types were good against fighting pokÃ©mon. I also took Chazz, because it was one of my best pokÃ©mon and although it didn't know any flying moves its flying capabilities would still come in handy. Catafree was another obvious choice with its psychic attacks. Of course I took Tailz, because I still couldn't convince it to go inside a pokÃ©ball. For the final two I decided to take Seaworth to improve its strength, and Knotty to test out its powers.  
  
So we headed out once again. The land around us seemed deserted; we were walking down a long dirt path with no buildings in sight.  
  
'Vul!' said Tailz suddenly.  
  
'What is it Tailz?' I asked, bending down to my vulpix. It was sniffing the air.  
  
'Vulpix,' it said.  
  
'What can you smell?' I asked.  
  
'Vul vul,' said Tailz, and gestured to my pokÃ©balls.  
  
'You smell pokÃ©balls?' I asked. Tailz shook its head. 'You smell pokÃ©mon?'  
  
'Vulpix!' smiled Tailz, nodding. I patted it on the head.  
  
'Good work,' I said. 'Where are they?'  
  
'Vul..' said Tailz, and started sniffing again. 'Pix!'  
  
It started to bound away.  
  
'Come on, let's go see what kind of pokÃ©mon it's found!' I said. The others nodded and followed me. After a few minutes we caught up to Tailz. It was sitting down, looking worriedly at a pokÃ©mon who was lying on the ground. I looked closely and saw that it was a growlithe.  
  
'Wow, a growlithe!' said Sand-Cloud.  
  
'It doesn't look too good,' I said, walking over to it. It had a cut down its face and a sad look in its eyes. 'Hey, what happened to you?'  
  
'Grrrowlithe!' it said, and shakily stood up. It backed away and snarled at me.  
  
'We won't hurt you,' I said. 'It's OK. Come on, show me what's wrong with you.'  
  
The growlithe just growled some more. Luckily, Tailz came to the rescue.  
  
'Vulpix vul vul vulpix!' it said. The growlithe titled its head.  
  
'Grrr.. growlithe?' it asked. The two kept talking for a while, and finally Tailz seemed to convince the growlithe that we were there to help it.  
  
'Hey, how about you come with us, and we can take you to a pokÃ©mon centre?' I asked.  
  
'Growl,' said the growlithe, looking hesitant.  
  
'Come on,' I said. 'If you stay out here in this condition you'll only get hurt more.'  
  
'Growlithe growl,' said the growlithe, and slowly stepped towards me. I smiled and held out my hand for it to sniff, so it could get used to my scent. After sniffing me for a minute or so, it seemed happy enough to come along with us. I patted it on the head, then lifted it into my arms.  
  
'You'll be better in no time,' I said. I looked down at my vulpix. 'Thanks Tailz.'  
  
'Vulpix vul,' smiled Tailz. And we hurried to the pokÃ©mon centre to get the growlithe healed.  
  
~Janet~  
  
END OF PART NINE 


	12. Part Ten

Part Ten, Chapter One  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Allin, Spark the zapdos, Knotty the tangela  
  
We'd been travelling for just over two weeks when we reached Scrap Town. The growlithe that Tailz had found injured along the way had become attached to us and agreed to become one of my pokÃ©mon. I'd been thrilled, of course! I named the little pokÃ©mon "Snarlithe", and had decided to switch it with Seaworth in my team for battling the next gym leader. I knew that made my team unbalanced with three fire types, but I didn't want to switch Snarlithe with Tailz or Chazz; they were too valuable. Besides, these were fighting pokÃ©mon I was going to be battling; fire types didn't have any disadvantages with them.  
  
So I headed to the gym with my team of Potow, Catafree, Knotty, Chazz, Snarlithe and Tailz. Sand-Cloud, Gelby, Allin and Spark all came along with me to watch the battle. Hopefully their support would help me win.  
  
As I entered the gym I saw a girl who looked a few years older than me, with a hitmonchan. She had her fists up and looked as if she was trying to teach it to use some kind of punch attack. I walked over to her.  
  
'Hi,' I said. 'I'm Janet.. I'm looking for the gym leader..'  
  
'Well you've just found her,' smiled the girl, standing up straight and gesturing to the hitmonchan to stop.  
  
'Oh,' I said. For some reason I'd expected the fighting-type gym leader to be a guy. 'Well... I challenge you to a battle!'  
  
'I accept your challenge,' said the girl. 'My name is Daneeka by the way.'  
  
I nodded, and we took our places on the battlefield. My friends stood on the sidelines to watch. Daneeka looked at them and paused.  
  
'Didn't I battle you a few weeks ago?' she asked Allin.  
  
'Yeah,' smiled Allin.  
  
'I thought so,' said Daneeka. 'There can't be too many trainers with a talking baby zapdos around here..'  
  
Allin laughed and scratched Spark under the chin. The little thunder bird chirped happily.  
  
'Alright, let's get started,' said Daneeka. 'I'll start with Hitmonchan!'  
  
'Then I choose...' I thought through my pokÃ©mon. I decided to save Potow and Catafree for later, since Daneeka would probably leave her best pokÃ©mon until last. 'Knotty!'  
  
Daneeka blinked. 'A tangela? Gee.. you're the first trainer I've seen who uses a tangela.'  
  
'I wouldn't be surprised,' I said, rolling my eyes. I never could understand why no one ever seemed to use tangelas.. how could people not see their charm? 'But let's get on with this! Knotty, vine whip!'  
  
'Tangel!' said Knotty, sending out its vines and hitting Hitmonchan.  
  
'Hitmonchan, knock those vines away!' said Daneeka. 'Fire punch!'  
  
I gasped as a ball of fire formed around Hitmonchan's fist. I didn't know hitmonchans had that kind of power! Maybe I should have brought Seaworth after all..  
  
'Tan!' Knotty cried as the fire started burning its vines.  
  
'Knotty, stun spore!' I said. Knotty kicked powder at Hitmonchan, but it didn't seem to work.  
  
'So it's paralysis you're trying for?' Daneeka asked. 'Well I've got something even better.. Hitmonchan, ice punch!'  
  
'Oh no,' I breathed as Hitmonchan's fighting glove froze and it leapt at Knotty. As the icy fist hit my tangela, the ice spread over its body and covered it, freezing it solid. 'Oh, Knotty!'  
  
I recalled my poor frozen tangela and thought through which pokÃ©mon to send out against Hitmonchan. This battle was going to be tougher than I thought.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Ten, Chapter Two  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Allin, Spark the zapdos, Daneeka the pokÃ©mon leader of fighting, Tailz the vulpix, Catafree the butterfree, Chazz the charizard, Potow the pidgeotto  
  
'Tailz,' I said to my vulpix. 'It's your turn.'  
  
'Vulpix,' nodded Tailz, and stepped into the battleground. Even though it was weak, Tailz was my best option.. fire punch and ice punch wouldn't hurt it as badly as they would my stronger pokÃ©mon.  
  
'Hitmonchan, mega punch!' said Daneeka.  
  
'Hiiitmonchan!' roared her pokÃ©mon. It thrust its huge glove into Tailz.  
  
'Vulpix!' cried Tailz, falling backwards.  
  
'Tailz, hang in there!' I said. 'Flamethrower attack!'  
  
'VUUUL!' roared Tailz, opening its mouth and letting out a beam of fire. Hitmonchan blinked and fell to the ground.  
  
'Oh my goodness!' Daneeka exclaimed. I was pretty shocked too. I hadn't expected Tailz's attack to do that much damage. 'Hitmonchan, get up! You can do it!'  
  
'Hitmon,' said Hitmonchan. It pulled itself up, but I could tell that it was weak.  
  
'Hitmonchan, thunderpunch!' said Daneeka. Electricity started buzzing around Hitmonchan's fist..  
  
'Tailz, quick attack!' I said hurriedly. Tailz charged in and threw Hitmonchan to the ground before it could attack. That was all it needed to make the pokÃ©mon faint.  
  
'Well done, that vulpix is strong,' said Daneeka. I smiled. 'Hitmonchan, return. You may have defeated the punching fiend but you'll never beat the kicking fiend! Go, Hitmonlee!'  
  
She threw a pokÃ©ball and a tall brown pokÃ©mon with long legs appeared. It had a slight resemblance to Hitmonchan. PokÃ©mon researchers were still puzzled as to how Hitmonlee and Hitmonchan were related; neither of them evolved from the other.  
  
'Tailz, if you beat Hitmonchan you can beat Hitmonlee!' I said. 'Flamethrower!'  
  
'That's not enough to beat Hitmonlee,' said Daneeka. 'It may not have the elemental attacks like Hitmonchan but it's at a higher level. Hi jump kick!'  
  
'Hitmonleeeeee!' said Hitmonlee, leaping into the air. I blinked. I didn't know pokÃ©mon could jump so high!  
  
Hitmonlee came crashing down, foot-first into Tailz.  
  
'Vuuul!' it cried. I bit my lip.  
  
'Tailz, you'd better come back,' I said. Tailz nodded and hurried back to my side. I patted it on the head. 'You did well. Now, I choose.. Catafree!'  
  
'Hmm,' said Daneeka. 'Your butterfree looks strong. Don't let your guard down, Hitmonlee. Focus energy!'  
  
Hitmonlee started building up its energy for the next attack. But I knew Catafree had enough power to knock it out anyway.  
  
'Catafree, psybeam!' I said.  
  
'Freeeee!' said Catafree. It fired a beam of energy at Hitmonlee and sent it flying.  
  
'Hitmonlee!' Daneeka cried. 'Quick, get back at it with a hi jump kick!'  
  
'Hitmon!' said Hitmonlee. It spun around and kicked Catafree while it was still in the air, then landed safely on the ground. Even though it had done a lot of damage to my butterfree, Catafree had the advantage.  
  
'Catafree, another psybeam!' I said.  
  
'Hitmonlee, dodge it by using another hi jump kick!' said Daneeka. I gasped as Hitmonlee evaded Catafree's psybeam by leaping into the air. Then I smiled, as the fighting pokÃ©mon's attack missed my butterfree, and it came crashing back to the ground with a big thump.  
  
'Hit.. mon..' it murmured.  
  
'Hitmonlee return!' called Daneeka. 'Go Machoke!'  
  
'Oh great,' I said. 'This one looks even tougher. Catafree, keep at it! Psybeam!'  
  
'Beee free!' said Catafree, and psybeamed the machoke.  
  
'Machoke, seismic toss!' said Daneeka.  
  
'Ma!' said Machoke. It grabbed hold of Catafree and leapt into the air. 'Maaaaa...CHOKE!'  
  
With that, it threw my butterfree to the ground.  
  
'Think that's gonna work?' I smiled. 'Catafree, start flying, quickly!'  
  
Catafree started flapping its wings as fast as it could, and managed to fly back into the air before it hit the ground. I smiled.  
  
'Now, keep using psybeam!' I said.  
  
'Machoke, karate chop!' said Daneeka. This attack actually worked, and it did a lot of damage too. I decided it was time to give Catafree a rest.  
  
'Catafree return,' I said. 'You did really well, Cat. Now, go Chazz!'  
  
'Machoke, karate chop!' said Daneeka.  
  
'Chazz, flamethrower!' I said. Chazz's flamethrower was a lot stronger than Tailz's, and did a lot of damage to Machoke.  
  
'Wow, that's a good charizard,' said Daneeka. 'But it's no match for Machoke! Machoke, submission!'  
  
Machoke slammed into Chazz and knocked it to the ground. My charizard seemed to take a lot of damage, but Machoke had used up a lot of its energy to use the attack. Chazz would be able to knock it out soon.  
  
'Chazz, slash!' I said. Chazz swiped its claws down Machoke's face. The big fighting pokÃ©mon cried out.  
  
'Machoke return!' called Daneeka. 'Go, Primeape!'  
  
A big fluffy monkey-like pokÃ©mon appeared. It looked pretty tough.  
  
'Primeape, fury swipes!' said Daneeka. Primeape ran up to Chazz and started slashing it as much as it could.  
  
'Chazz, flamethrower!' I said. Chazz bent its head down and breathed fire all over Primeape.  
  
'Prrrrimeape!' the pokÃ©mon cried.  
  
'Primeape!' said Daneeka. 'Get back in there with thrash!'  
  
'Prime!' said Primeape. It charged at Chazz with all its might and attacked. Chazz was losing power rapidly.  
  
'Chazz return,' I said. 'Alright Potow, your turn!'  
  
I knew it was risky sending out Potow early. If she had another strong pokÃ©mon after Primeape I was certainly in trouble. But I was willing to risk it, and besides, Potow would be able to defeat fighting pokÃ©mon easily!  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Ten, Chapter Three  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Allin, Spark the zapdos, Daneeka the pokÃ©mon leader of fighting, Potow the pidgeotto, Snarlithe the growlithe  
  
'Primeape, keep thrashing!' said Daneeka.  
  
'Pidgeoo!' cried Potow. I gulped. It was getting hurt badly already.  
  
'Potow, wing attack!' I said. Potow flew down and hit Primeape with its wings.  
  
'Prime..' it moaned in pain.  
  
'Primeape, you can do it!' said Daneeka. 'Keep up the thrash!'  
  
'Prime prime prime!' roared the pokÃ©mon, punching Potow quickly and strongly.  
  
'Potow, another wing attack!' I said.  
  
'Pidgeo!' said Potow, slapping Primeape some more. It wouldn't be much longer before Primeape was knocked out, but Potow was looking pretty bad too. Primeape kept thrashing at Potow, and my poor pidgeotto dropped out of the sky.  
  
'Oh no,' I breathed. 'Potow, return. Snarlithe, I choose you!'  
  
'Another fire type,' said Daneeka. 'You're going to regret that.'  
  
I wasn't sure how to take that comment, so I just ignored it. 'Snarlithe, bite!'  
  
'Grrrrowlithe!' said Snarlithe, sinking its teeth into Primeape. The fighting pokÃ©mon, worn out after the battle with Chazz and Potow, collapsed.  
  
'Great work, Snarlithe!' I said. The little growlithe smiled.  
  
'Primeape return,' said Daneeka. She smiled. 'Now, my final pokÃ©mon.. look out, little growlithe, because you're not going to like this. I choose you...'  
  
She threw a pokÃ©ball. We all watched with anticipation for the pokÃ©mon to appear. And when it did, I was shocked.  
  
'P.. Poliwrath!?' I exclaimed. Then I remembered; when Poliwhirl evolved into Poliwrath, it gained fighting as its second type. If only I'd thought of that earlier, I wouldn't have brought Snarlithe with me, let alone left it until last!  
  
'That's right, Poliwrath,' smiled Daneeka. 'Now Poliwrath, show that growlithe what fighting pokÃ©mon are capable of! Water gun!'  
  
Poliwrath shot out water and soaked Snarlithe. The growlithe shivered, but stood up determinedly to keep fighting.  
  
'Snarlithe, take down!' I said. I knew it was risky, using a move that did damage to the pokÃ©mon who used it.. but it was a strong move and I had to take as much HP off Poliwrath as I could before it use another water attack.  
  
'Growlithe!' barked Snarlithe, knocking Poliwrath over. It shook its head, trying to ignore the pain it got from using the attack.  
  
'Poliwrath, let's be a bit nicer,' said Daneeka. 'Doubleslap!'  
  
'Poliwrath,' said her pokÃ©mon. It grabbed Snarlithe by the scruff of the neck and slapped it repeatedly.  
  
'Gr, gr, growlithe..' moaned Snarlithe.  
  
'Snarlithe,' I said. 'Bite!'  
  
Snarlithe put its jaw around Poliwrath's hand and bit down hard. The big frog pokÃ©mon yelled and threw Snarlithe away.  
  
'Now take down, quickly!' I said.  
  
'Grrowlithe!' said Snarlithe, leaping in and throwing Poliwrath down. It did a lot of damage.. Poliwrath was nearly down for good!  
  
'Poliwrath, water gun!' said Daneeka. I bit my lip as Snarlithe was drenched with water once again. Its health was really low now.. but we had to win this.  
  
'Snarlithe, take down!' I said.  
  
'Grrrowl!' said Snarlithe. It threw Poliwrath to the ground one last time, then collapsed. The recoil had caused it to faint! But as I looked at Poliwrath, I saw that it too had fainted from the attack.  
  
'Poliwrath return,' said Daneeka. She looked up at me. 'That's one strong growlithe you have there. Even though both our pokÃ©mon fainted at the same time, your vulpix is still standing. So I declare you the winner.'  
  
I smiled, rushed over to Snarlithe and pulled it into my arms.  
  
'Growl..' it said weakly.  
  
'Well done Snarlithe,' I said. 'I'm so proud of you.'  
  
'You're a talented trainer, Janet,' said Daneeka. 'Your pokÃ©mon are at high levels for someone your age, and you were able to keep focussed enough to defeat a strong water pokÃ©mon with a small fire type. You and your pokÃ©mon deserve this badge.'  
  
I smiled as Daneeka handed me the fighting badge. That made nine badges: only six more to go! I was three fifths of the way there. It wouldn't be long before I made it to the PokÃ©mon League..  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Ten, Chapter Four  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Allin, Spark the zapdos  
  
'That was some battle,' said Sand-Cloud as we walked out of the pokÃ©mon centre. We weren't really sure where to head next, but it was great to be on the road again after the tough gym battle. I'd switched Snarlithe for Bybee, wanting to give my growlithe a rest after its huge effort at the gym.. and I also wanted my little rattata to get some more experience.  
  
'I know,' said Allin. 'I thought you were done for when she sent out Poliwrath.'  
  
'So did I!' I laughed. 'That'll teach me to take three fire pokÃ©mon with me!'  
  
'Jiggly! Jiggly jigglypuff!'  
  
I stopped walking. 'Did anyone else just hear that?'  
  
'Hear what?' Allin asked.  
  
'I could have sworn I heard a jigglypuff..' I said.  
  
'Spark hear it!' said Spark. I smiled.  
  
'Well, let's find it!' said Sand-Cloud. 'You might be able to capture it!'  
  
'I hope so,' I said. 'I could do with another normal-type pokÃ©mon. Now, let's be quiet so we can hear it again..'  
  
We were all silent. But no voice came for a few minutes. And when one did finally come, it wasn't the one we were expecting..  
  
'Go, Electabuzz! Um, Electabuzz, thundersho-- no, don't! No, attack it!'  
  
And then there was the sound of an electabuzz attacking, and a boy crying out in pain. I had to try not to laugh.  
  
'That's not who I think it is, is it?' I smiled.  
  
'Who else would it be?' Sand-Cloud rolled her eyes.  
  
'Electabuzz, what are you doing!?' the voice cried. It seemed to be getting closer. Suddenly I saw someone running towards us, an electabuzz running after him. Yep, it was him alright.  
  
'He still hasn't trained that thing?' I smiled. Sand-Cloud was laughing hysterically. Allin looked confused.  
  
'Shovel, go! Earthquake!'  
  
The electabuzz was finally stopped by the powerful dugtrio. With a sigh of relief, the pokÃ©mon's trainer recalled both of them.  
  
'Hi Luke,' I smiled.  
  
'Oh, Janet!' said Luke. He smiled. 'You haven't seen a jigglypuff around here anywhere have you?'  
  
'No, but I did hear one,' I said. Luke sighed. Then he belatedly spotted Allin.  
  
'Oh hi Allin,' he said.  
  
'Hi,' said Allin. Luke looked around.  
  
'That thing's got to be around here somewhere..' he said.  
  
'Jiggly jiggly jiggly..'  
  
'I hear it!' said Gelby. She pointed. 'It's coming from over there!'  
  
'Alright!' said Luke excitedly. He rushed to where Gelby had pointed. I looked at the others, shrugged and followed. Finally the jigglypuff came into view. It was smaller than most jigglypuffs I'd seen.. it was probably really young.  
  
Luke took out a pokÃ©ball. 'Go, Electa-- er, maybe that's not a good idea. Go Nidorina!'  
  
'Jiggly?' Jigglypuff titled its huge head as it watched the poison pokÃ©mon appear from its pokÃ©ball.  
  
'Nidorina, fury swipes!' said Luke.  
  
'Nido!' said Nidorina, slashing at Jigglypuff.  
  
'Puuuuuff!' the little pokÃ©mon squealed. 'Jiggly PUFF!'  
  
It inflated itself in anger. Luke started laughing. I didn't see what was so funny about that, but you never knew with Luke.  
  
'Nidorina!' smiled Luke. 'Poison sting!'  
  
His pokÃ©mon stung Jigglypuff with its horn. The pink ball started screaming.  
  
'Now's my chance,' said Luke. 'PokÃ©ball, go!'  
  
He threw a pokÃ©ball and it sucked Jigglypuff inside. The light went out almost right away. Luke grinned and picked it up.  
  
'Weren't you going to catch that?' Sand-Cloud asked.  
  
I shrugged. 'He saw it first.'  
  
'I got Jigglypuff I got Jigglypuff I got Jigglypuff I got Jigglypuff!' Luke chanted excitedly. He held the pokÃ©ball out to me. 'I got Jigglypuff!!!'  
  
'Um,' I said, taking a step back. 'That's nice. Are you alright, Luke?'  
  
'Yes!' said Luke. 'I got Jigglypuff!'  
  
'We heard you the first time,' said Sand-Cloud. 'And the second, and the third..'  
  
'You don't understand,' said Luke. 'I got JIGGLYPUFF.'  
  
'No really, we do understand,' I said. I patted him on the back. 'Yes, we're very excited for you. Now can you please calm down?'  
  
Luke laughed. 'But, but I got--'  
  
'WE KNOW!' said Sand-Cloud, starting to get annoyed. 'You got Jigglypuff. We get the idea. Now will you SHUT UP!'  
  
Luke was silent for a moment. He looked at me.  
  
'Sorry,' he said. 'But I've been waiting so long to get a jigglypuff. Come on, let's go to a pokÃ©mon centre so I can heal it!'  
  
He grabbed my hand and dragged me away.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Ten, Chapter Five  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Allin, Spark the zapdos  
  
'Thanks Nurse Joy!' Luke said with a big smile as he was handed his pokÃ©balls. He enlarged one excitedly. 'I choose.. he he he.. Jigglypuff!'  
  
I moaned and looked at the others. How long was he going to stay this excited for?  
  
'Wow, it's actually a jigglypuff, and it's mine!' said Luke. He picked it up and hugged it, laughing. 'It's so soft and round and fluffy and CUTE!'  
  
'Luke's really scaring me,' said Sand-Cloud. 'I mean, he was always weird, but not this weird..'  
  
'I never knew he liked jigglypuffs so much..' I said.  
  
'I wonder if it'll treat him the same as his electabuzz does, that'll make him shut up,' said Sand-Cloud. I laughed. But when I looked over at Luke and Jigglypuff, I realised that it wasn't going to happen. The little round pokÃ©mon was giggling happily as Luke fussed over it.  
  
'Can't we just leave?' Sand-Cloud moaned.  
  
'Actually, I might use this opportunity to leave..' said Allin. 'I've got to get back on track to the next gym..'  
  
'Oh,' I said. 'Well, thanks a lot for leading me to Scrap Town.'  
  
'No problem,' said Allin. He smiled. 'I'll see you later.'  
  
'Yeah, bye Allin,' I said. 'And bye Spark!'  
  
'Bye Spark!' Spark repeated. I laughed. Spark said the funniest things!  
  
Allin, with Spark following, headed to the door. Suddenly Luke noticed him, and actually drew his attention away from Jigglypuff.  
  
'Hey, where are you going Allin?' Luke called.  
  
'I'm leaving..' said Allin.  
  
'Hang on,' said Luke. 'Before you go, can we have a battle? I didn't get to battle you last time, and, well.. I want to see how good you are.'  
  
He smiled. Allin paused.  
  
'Alright then,' he said.  
  
'Cool,' said Luke. Jigglypuff in his arms, he gathered his pokÃ©balls and headed outside. Sand-Cloud, Gelby and I followed.  
  
'Alright,' said Allin. 'I choose Porygon!'  
  
Allin's porygon appeared from its pokÃ©ball.  
  
'I choose... Jigglypuff!' said Luke, and started laughing.  
  
'Oh no,' moaned Sand-Cloud. I smiled.  
  
Jigglypuff looked up at its new trainer, confused.  
  
'Um, Jigglypuff,' said Luke. 'Go over there.'  
  
He pointed to Porygon.  
  
'Jiggly?' asked Jigglypuff.  
  
'It's a battle,' said Luke. 'You know, where you get to show off all your attacks. Go on, give it a try.'  
  
'Jigglypuff!' said Jigglypuff. It smiled and stepped up to the porygon.  
  
'Well that worked,' Gelby commented.  
  
'Porygon,' said Allin. 'Tri attack now!'  
  
'Porygon!' said his pokÃ©mon as it attacked Jigglypuff.  
  
'PUFF!' screamed Jigglypuff, taking the damage badly.  
  
'Jigglypuff,' said Luke. He started laughing again. 'Sing!!'  
  
Silence.  
  
'Um,' said Luke. 'Jigglypuff, sing!'  
  
More silence.  
  
Jigglypuff turned to its master. 'Puff?'  
  
Now it was everyone else's turn to laugh, as Luke's excited expression dropped dramatically. He stared at his new pokÃ©mon.  
  
'Don't tell me.. the jigglypuff.. can't.. sing..' he said.  
  
'Puff!' smiled Jigglypuff innocently.  
  
'Noooo!' Luke wailed. 'I search for months on end for one little jigglypuff and I finally find one and it can't even sing!?'  
  
'Jig...' murmured Jigglypuff, guiltily.  
  
'Calm down Luke,' I said. 'It's only young. Jigglypuffs don't know how to sing right away, they have to learn how to.'  
  
'That's it!' said Luke. 'It has to learn how to!'  
  
He grinned.  
  
'Maybe you shouldn't have said that..' said Sand-Cloud, sensing that Luke had come up with some kind of crazy plan.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Ten, Chapter Six  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Allin, Spark the zapdos  
  
'OK!' said Luke determinedly. 'The best way to learn things is by seeing someone else do it..'  
  
'Oh no,' I said. 'Please don't tell me he's going to..'  
  
'Who wants to volunteer?' Luke asked. We all stared at him.  
  
'Luke, it's your jigglypuff,' I said.  
  
'Oh, please don't say that!' said Sand-Cloud, and covered her earholes. Luke grinned.  
  
'OK Jigglypuff, watch me,' he said. 'Um, what song should I sing?'  
  
'Nothing!' said Sand-Cloud.  
  
'"What kind of pokÃ©mon are you?",' I said with a smile.  
  
'Noooo!' Luke yelled. 'I hate that song!'  
  
'Why do you think I suggested it?' I smiled.  
  
Sand-Cloud suddenly gasped, then grinned. 'Sing "Misty's Song"!'  
  
I didn't even want to know why she'd suggested that..  
  
Luke started laughing hysterically. 'Um..... um, how about I don't?'  
  
'The PokÃ©Rap!' said Gelby. Luke smiled.  
  
'I want to be the best.. that ever was..' he started to sing. I stared at him. He actually was a pretty good singer! 'To beat all the rest, yeah that's my cause.. um, I don't know the next bit.'  
  
We all laughed.  
  
'Jigglypuff, why don't you try it?' Luke asked, bending down to his pokÃ©mon.  
  
'Jiggly...' said Jigglypuff, confused. Luke sighed.  
  
'OK, let's try again,' he said. He paused. 'I wanna be the very best.. like no one ever was... to catch them is my real test.. to train them is my cause.. come on Jigglypuff, you can do it!'  
  
'J.. jiggly..' croaked Jigglypuff. It frowned. 'Puff!'  
  
'Come on, you have to keep trying,' said Luke. 'You don't learn how to do something by giving up! If at first you don't succeed, cheat! I mean.. try try again!'  
  
Everyone laughed.  
  
'Luke, you're not being a very good role model,' I smiled.  
  
'Yeah, well you try teaching a pokÃ©mon to sing!' said Luke defensively.  
  
'At least she can teach a pokÃ©mon not to thunderbolt her every chance it gets,' smirked Sand-Cloud. Luke glared at her.  
  
'For your information, Electabuzz is trained perfectly well!' he said.  
  
'Oh yeah, that's why you lost Jigglypuff because it was chasing you away,' said Sand-Cloud.  
  
'Look, this isn't about Electabuzz, it's about Jigglypuff,' said Luke, trying to avoid the topic. He looked at Jigglypuff again. 'Come on Jigglypuff, please try again.'  
  
'Jigglypuff!' said Jigglypuff defiantly, turning its back on Luke. Luke sighed and patted it on its head.  
  
'Hey, it's OK,' he said. 'I don't expect you to do it on your first try. Look, we'll try again tomorrow, how's that?'  
  
'Puff..' sighed Jigglypuff.  
  
'It's not that hard,' said Luke. 'Once you get the hang of it it's easy, trust me. And you'll be happy with yourself once you've done it. Sing is really useful in battle, you know.'  
  
'Jiggly,' said Jigglypuff.  
  
'Come on,' said Luke. He picked up the little pokÃ©mon. 'It's getting late anyway. Let's get some sleep, we can try again tomorrow.'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Ten, Chapter Seven  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson  
  
Even though his battle with Luke hadn't exactly worked out, Allin left the next morning. He probably wanted to get away from Luke's hyperactive "I caught Jigglypuff" mood.. speaking of which, Luke was just as determined as ever to teach Jigglypuff to sing that day..  
  
'..I've known you since I don't know when! We've got lots of friends, but they come and goooo! Come on guys, join in! Jigglypuff won't try if it's just me doing it, it needs to know that anyone can do it!'  
  
'Yeah, but I can't,' I smiled.  
  
'Yes you can!' said Luke. 'Come on, sing sing sing!'  
  
'Jiggly jiggly!' said Jigglypuff excitedly. Luke laughed.  
  
'See, it wants you to!' he said.  
  
'I don't care, I can't sing,' I laughed.  
  
'Sing "Aiming at Pokemon Master"!' said Sand-Cloud. I smiled.  
  
'Tatoe hi no naka, mizu no naka, kusa no naka, mori no naka.. tsuchi no naka, kumo no naka, ano ko no sukaato no naka!' I attempted to sing. Sand- Cloud joined in for the next bit. 'Nakanaka nakanaka nakanaka nakanaka taihen dakedo! Kanarazu getto daze! Pokemon getto daze-e-e-e-e-e-yeah!'  
  
Luke stared at me. 'Now you're scaring me.'  
  
'Hey, she suggested it!' I laughed, pointing at Sand-Cloud.  
  
'Jiggly?' Jigglypuff looked well and truly confused.  
  
'Just ignore Janet, Jigglypuff,' said Luke. 'She's crazy. Now listen to me sing!'  
  
'Oh no,' said Sand-Cloud.  
  
'In the morning when you wake up.. open your eyes to a new day.. look around at the things you've got.. you've been so lucky along the way..' sang Luke. I guess he was meant to be inspiring Jigglypuff with this song.. 'Time to finish what you've begun.. have the faith, you're the one! Throw your hat high, up to the skyyyy! It's your destiny, spread your wings and fly.. you can do it if you really try, you can do it if you really try, reach for the top and touch the sky, you can do it if you really, really try..'  
  
'Jigglypuff?' Jigglypuff asked, confused.  
  
'Jigglypuff!' moaned Luke. 'Just TRY!'  
  
'Puff,' said Jigglypuff sadly. Luke sighed.  
  
'Luke, don't worry so much about it,' I said. 'I'm sure Jigglypuff can use other attacks..'  
  
'I know, but.. I really wanted it to sing,' said Luke. 'I've seen jigglypuffs use their sing attacks in battle before, it's amazing. If you train them to be powerful enough, jigglypuffs can be the best pokÃ©mon in the world. And they're so CUTE!'  
  
I smiled. I'd never heard Luke call a pokÃ©mon "cute" before. He really did like jigglypuffs..  
  
'Jigglypuff,' sighed Luke, picking up his pokÃ©mon. 'If you really can't sing, then.. that's OK. I still think you're a great pokÃ©mon. But I really do want you to try, it would make me really happy if you could sing..'  
  
'Puff,' said Jigglypuff sadly.  
  
'You obviously don't know anything about teaching pokÃ©mon to sing!'  
  
We all looked at each other. Who had said that? Slowly, we turned around and saw a girl standing behind us, looking at us and smiling.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Ten, Chapter Eight  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Tailz the vulpix  
  
'Um...' said Luke. 'Who are you?'  
  
'The name's Harm,' said the girl, stepping forward. 'I happen to specialise in singing pokÃ©mon. And I couldn't help overhearing you trying to teach your jigglypuff to sing. Well obviously I couldn't, you were singing so loudly..'  
  
'You specialise in singing pokÃ©mon!?' Luke exclaimed. Harm nodded.  
  
'I have done ever since I was given a chansey egg as a little girl,' she said. 'When it hatched and I heard it sing, I knew I just had to train pokÃ©mon that could sing! So anyway, are you lot going to introduce yourselves?'  
  
'I'm Luke,' said Luke. 'Those three call themselves Team Yellow. Janet, Sand-Cloud and Gelby.'  
  
'Vuuul!' said Tailz. I smiled.  
  
'And this is Tailz,' I added. Tailz smiled.  
  
'That's a very nice vulpix,' said Harm, bending down and patting it. Luke looked at Harm impatiently.  
  
'So are you going to tell me how to do it or not?' he asked.  
  
'Luke,' I said. 'Calm down, you can't just demand that she gives away all her secrets!'  
  
Harm smiled. 'I'd be glad to help. That's why I started talking to you in the first place!'  
  
She stood up and stepped over to Luke.  
  
'There's one main thing you're forgetting,' she said. She pointed at Luke. 'You are a human.' She pointed at Jigglypuff. 'It is a pokÃ©mon.'  
  
'I didn't notice,' said Luke sarcastically.  
  
'Human. PokÃ©mon.' Harm said. 'Very different creatures!'  
  
'OK, OK, I get the drift,' said Luke. 'Now are you going to explain things?'  
  
'Humans singing and pokÃ©mon singing are completely different things,' said Harm. 'Humans sing because they like music. PokÃ©mon sing as an attack.'  
  
'But isn't it still the same?' Luke asked. Harm shook her head.  
  
'If your jigglypuff sings like you sing, that's not going to help it in battle,' she said. 'Any pokÃ©mon can sing, but only some pokÃ©mon can use the Sing attack. They're very different things, and you have to understand that before you can teach a pokÃ©mon to sing. That's the main problem you've got.'  
  
'I see,' said Luke. 'So how do I go about teaching Jigglypuff to use the sing attack? I mean, I can't show it how to do it since I can't do it..'  
  
'Exactly,' said Harm. 'That's why most pokÃ©mon learn how to do it naturally. However, if you really want to teach your jigglypuff to sing.. you're right, you can encourage it by singing..'  
  
Luke moaned. 'Then why the big lecture? I was doing the right thing all along!'  
  
Harm shook her finger at him. 'No you weren't. You can't just sing songs off the "2 B A Master" CD and expect it to start singing. You have to sing something that it likes, that it wants to sing. I mean, humans don't generally sing songs they don't like.. and neither do pokÃ©mon.'  
  
'But how am I supposed to know what songs Jigglypuff likes!?' Luke exclaimed.  
  
'You don't have to worry about that, because I already know what songs it likes,' smiled Harm. Luke stared at her.  
  
'How would you know what songs it likes?' he asked.  
  
'Well I can't say for sure, but I can make a good guess,' said Harm. 'Jigglypuffs are very self-conscious, they like getting praise, they like to be loved. And more than anything, they love seeing their names up in lights. So it's obvious, isn't it? Sing about jigglypuffs!'  
  
'But I don't know any songs about jigglypuffs!' said Luke.  
  
'It's simple,' said Harm. 'Make some up!'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Ten, Chapter Nine  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Harm  
  
'Hit me Jiggly one more time!'  
  
'Oh my goodness...' Sand-Cloud groaned.  
  
'This is embarrassing,' said Gelby, covering her eyes. I just laughed. Luke could be such an idiot sometimes, especially when he was trying to each a jigglypuff to sing.  
  
'Ji... jigglee.....' Jigglypuff looked scared.  
  
'Oh come on, how can you not like that song?' Luke asked.  
  
'Puff...' said Jigglypuff, taking a step back.  
  
'I've got another idea,' said Harm. 'I'm not sure if it'll work, it's a bit weird.'  
  
'Anything to make him shut up!' said Sand-Cloud. Harm laughed.  
  
'OK Luke, try this,' said Harm. 'Even though the pokÃ©mon language doesn't work the same way the human language does, this might work. You've heard a jigglypuff sing, right?'  
  
'Yeah..' said Luke.  
  
'Well it's simple,' said Harm. 'Just imitate the sound it makes.'  
  
Luke paused. 'What, you mean like "jiggly jiggly jigglypuff"?'  
  
'Exactly!' Harm smiled.  
  
'It's worth a shot,' said Luke. He turned to his pokÃ©mon. 'OK Jigglypuff, try this. You ready?'  
  
'Puff,' Jigglypuff nodded.  
  
Luke took a deep breath. 'Jigg a lee puff, jigg a lee-ee-ee puff... jigg a lee puff, jigg a leeee...'  
  
'Jigglypuff!' said Jigglypuff, its eyes lighting up with excitement.  
  
Luke went on. 'Jigg a lee puff, jiggly puuuufff...'  
  
'Puff!' said Jigglypuff.  
  
'Jigg a lee puff, jigg a lee-ee-ee puff...'  
  
Jigglypuff smiled, and opened its mouth to join Luke... 'Jigg a lee puff, jigg a leeee...'  
  
'That's it!' Luke exclaimed. 'That's it Jigglypuff, you did it!'  
  
'Puff,' smiled Jigglypuff. Luke bent down and picked up his pokÃ©mon, hugging it.  
  
'I knew you could do it, I knew you could!' he said. 'You're the BEST, Jigglypuff!'  
  
'Jiggly, jiggly!' giggled Jigglypuff.  
  
'Well that was easy enough,' I said.  
  
Harm laughed. 'Different pokÃ©mon learn how to sing in different ways. You have to try all sorts of techniques before you work out which one's the best. What Luke doesn't seem to realise, though, is that his jigglypuff is very young. It won't just instantly memorise how to sing after doing it once, he's going to have to keep training it for quite some time before it can just sing on command.'  
  
'Oh great,' moaned Sand-Cloud. 'Does that mean we have to listen to him sing again?'  
  
'Oh come on, he wasn't that bad!' I laughed.  
  
'Well you would say that, wouldn't you?' Sand-Cloud rolled her eyes.  
  
'Um, would I?' I said, confused. Sand-Cloud sighed. Harm laughed.  
  
'If you don't mind, I'd like to travel with you for a few days,' she said. 'Just to see how Jigglypuff copes.'  
  
'Sure,' I smiled. 'We'd be glad to have you along.'  
  
'Hey guys!' said Luke excitedly, rushing over to us. 'I'm gonna go find a trainer so I can try out Jigglypuff's Sing attack! Come on!'  
  
He grabbed my hand and pulled me away. I laughed.  
  
'Luke, Harm said it won't just know how to sing,' I said. 'You have to train it a lot more before it can use it in battle!'  
  
He didn't seem to be listening to a word I said. Once he got into a battle, it was certainly going to be interesting.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Ten, Chapter Ten  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Harm  
  
We'd been walking for quite a while, looking for someone for Luke to battle against. He seemed determined that Jigglypuff would be able to sing and knock down any opponent he came across. The little pink pokÃ©mon in his arms didn't even seem to know what was going on.  
  
'Hey, it's Team Yellow!' came a familiar voice. 'I haven't beaten you for a while!'  
  
'That's because I keep beating you,' I said to Mitch.  
  
'Uh, I hate to tell you, but if I remember correctly.. I won the last match,' he said.  
  
'No you didn't,' I said, not even bothering to try and remember if he had.  
  
'I did so!' said Mitch. 'And I'll do it again! Come on, let's battle!'  
  
'Wait!' said Luke, stepping in front of me. 'I'll battle! Hi Mitch!'  
  
Mitch gave Luke a confused look. 'Yeah.. hi.'  
  
'Well come on, let's battle!' said Luke. 'I haven't battled you for ages!'  
  
'Alright,' shrugged Mitch. 'A win against you is close enough to a win against Janet. Go, Vileplume!'  
  
'Ha ha, this should be easy!' said Luke. 'Go, Jigglypuff!'  
  
Luke put his pokÃ©mon on the ground and pointed ahead, for dramatic effect.  
  
'Puff?' it asked, turning around and looking up at him. Mitch laughed.  
  
'Oh that's pathetic,' he said. 'Vileplume, get ready to beat that wimp!'  
  
'Jigglypuff,' said Luke. 'Please, just go over to Vileplume.'  
  
'Puff,' said Jigglypuff, and took a step towards the mushroom-like pokÃ©mon.  
  
'Well that's a start,' said Sand-Cloud.  
  
'Now Jigglypuff!' said Luke. 'Sing!!'  
  
'Jiggly!' nodded Jigglypuff. It took a deep breath, then stopped. 'Puff?'  
  
Sand-Cloud, Gelby and I started laughing. Harm moaned. Luke bit his lip.  
  
'Um,' he said. 'You know, like I showed you earlier..'  
  
'Jiggly..' said Jigglypuff guiltily, looking up with a fake smile.  
  
'Oh no,' moaned Luke. 'Don't tell me you've forgotten already!'  
  
'That pokÃ©mon's even more pathetic than I thought it was,' said Mitch. 'Vileplume, show it how a real pokÃ©mon puts its opponent to sleep. Sleep powder now!'  
  
'Viiile!' said his pokÃ©mon. It shook the petals on its head and a soft powder sprayed out, hitting Jigglypuff.  
  
'Jiggly! Jiggly!' Jigglypuff exclaimed. It blinked a few times. 'Jiggly... jigg.. lee... puu...'  
  
It fell to the ground.  
  
'No!' Luke exclaimed. 'Jigglypuff, no!'  
  
He rushed over and picked up his pokÃ©mon.  
  
'Mitch, that wasn't fair!' he said.  
  
'As if it wasn't!' said Mitch. 'You were going to use Sing, it's the same thing!'  
  
'No it's not!' said Luke. 'Jigglypuff is still learning how to sing, it was trying its hardest and you didn't even give it a chance!'  
  
'It wasn't trying at all!' Mitch laughed. 'The stupid thing was just standing there helpless!'  
  
Luke glared at him. 'But now the poor little jiggly will have lost all its confidence..'  
  
'Who cares?' Mitch asked. 'Are you going to send out another one or not?'  
  
'No,' said Luke. 'I'm going to go and heal Jigglypuff!'  
  
Mitch paused. 'Whatever, Luke. Since we both only used one pokÃ©mon, I'm the winner of that battle!'  
  
'Yeah, good for you,' said Luke. He turned to the rest of us. 'Come on, let's heal Jigglypuff, then find someone else to battle!'  
  
I sighed. Was he ever going to learn?  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Ten, Chapter Eleven  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Harm  
  
It took us a while to find a PokÃ©mon Centre, so we decided it was best to stay the night there and head out the next morning. I noticed that Luke kept Jigglypuff out of its pokÃ©ball. He must have decided that he loved it so much he had to have it with him at all times.  
  
The next morning we set out again, and Luke was still excitedly looking for a trainer to battle. Sand-Cloud was getting really annoyed with him, but I still found it funny.  
  
We were still looking for a trainer for Luke to battle when we came to a signpost. We stopped and took a look at it, so that we'd actually know where we were going for once. It said that the direction we were going in lead to a place called Cerebral City, which apparently had a gym. Luke boastfully told us he'd already won the badge from that city. The sign also pointed the way to Millton, the place I'd won my last badge at.  
  
'Ooh, I haven't got the badge from Millton,' said Luke. 'Let's go there!'  
  
'But I have got the badge from there,' I said. 'And I haven't got the one from Cerebral City.'  
  
'Damn,' said Sand-Cloud sarcastically. 'We're going to have to split up, what a shame Luke!'  
  
'Aww, Sand-Cloud hates me,' said Luke.  
  
'I don't hate you,' said Sand-Cloud. 'I'm just sick of you being obsessed with Jigglypuff and it singing.'  
  
I laughed. 'Anyway, she's right Luke.. we're gonna have to split up.'  
  
'But don't you want to hear me singing anymore?' Luke smiled.  
  
'I've heard enough,' I smiled. I turned to Harm. 'What about you, Harm? Where do you want to go?'  
  
'I'd better go with Luke,' said Harm. 'Just to make sure he doesn't kill Jigglypuff or anything.'  
  
'Hey!' Luke laughed.  
  
'Well, seeya Luke,' I said.  
  
'Bye Janet,' he said, and gave me a hug.  
  
'Bye everyone,' said Harm.  
  
'Bye Harm!' we said, waving. Luke, Harm and Jigglypuff headed down the road that lead to Millton. I turned to my friends.  
  
'Have you noticed, Luke never says goodbye to you two,' I said.  
  
Sand-Cloud laughed. 'Yes, I have noticed.'  
  
'Alright,' I smiled. 'Now let's head on to Cerebral City! Time to get my tenth badge!'  
  
I was excited already. Once I got that badge, I'd be two thirds of the way there. It wouldn't be long until I was a PokÃ©mon Master!  
  
~Janet~  
  
END OF PART TEN 


	13. Part Eleven

Part Eleven, Chapter One  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Pikapi the pikachu  
  
It didn't take as long as I'd thought it would to get to Cerebral City. In fact, we made it there within a week! I was actually disappointed, as I wanted to do a lot of training on my way there. I hoped my pokÃ©mon would be strong enough to defeat the gym leader.  
  
Nurse Joy told me that the gym leader was called Eustace, and used psychic-type pokÃ©mon. I knew that psychic pokÃ©mon were tough, so I had to think carefully about my team. In the end I chose Slothie, Weedie, Potow, Pikapi, Seaworth and Tailz. I knew that taking so many unevolved pokÃ©mon might not be a good idea, but I had to train them somewhere, and a gym was as good a place as any. So I found my way to the gym, and went inside.  
  
'Oh no, Raticate!' I heard someone cry. I saw a young trainer standing on the challenger's side of the battlefield. At the other side of the stadium, a tall boy with dark hair stood. In the middle of the battlefield, a raticate had collapsed on the ground. A kadabra stood up proudly.  
  
'Bad luck kid,' said the gym leader.  
  
'Oh Raticate!' cried the trainer. He rushed over to his pokÃ©mon and lifted it into his arms. Then he hurried past me, leaving the gym. The gym leader turned to me.  
  
'Greetings,' he said. 'My name is Eustace, I'm the pokÃ©mon leader of the psychic type. I take it you're here to challenge me.'  
  
I nodded. 'I'm Janet, and I'm here to earn my tenth badge.'  
  
'Nine badges?' Eustace said. 'Impressive. But I doubt that will be sufficient experience to beat me. Please allow me to heal my pokÃ©mon, I will be with you shortly.'  
  
I nodded. Eustace held out his pokÃ©ball and recalled his kadabra, then walked away. I turned to my friends.  
  
'He's going to be tough,' I said. 'You saw how bad that raticate looked.'  
  
'I know,' said Sand-Cloud. 'But you can beat him. Just be careful.'  
  
'Especially with Weedie,' said Gelby. 'Even though bug-type moves are strong against psychics, remember that Weedie's a poison-type too. Psychic moves will really hurt it.'  
  
I nodded. I knew that using Weedie would be hard, but I was going to have to use it to have any chance of doing a lot of damage to the psychic pokÃ©mon.  
  
After a few minutes, Eustace came back.  
  
'I'm ready if you are,' he said. 'Shall we commence?'  
  
I nodded, and thought through which pokÃ©mon to send out first. I decided to start small. 'I choose, Pikapi!'  
  
I threw a pokÃ©ball and my pikachu appeared.  
  
'Pika!' it said excitedly, ready for battle. I smiled.  
  
'An interesting choice,' said Eustace. 'Now it's my turn. I choose..'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Eleven, Chapter Two  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Pikapi the pikachu, Seaworth the seel, Slothie the snorlax, Eustace the pokÃ©mon leader of psychic  
  
'I choose Mr. Mime!'  
  
Eustace threw a pokÃ©ball, and a very odd-looking pokÃ©mon appeared. It had thin arms and legs, a large head and tufts of blue hair on either side of its face. I took out my pokÃ©dex.  
  
'Mr. Mime,' it said. 'A psychic pokÃ©mon. If interrupted while miming, it will slap around the enemy with its broad hands.'  
  
'OK Pikapi, you can handle this,' I said. 'Thundershock, now!'  
  
'Pika!' said Pikapi. It threw a bolt of electricity at Mr. Mime.  
  
'Mr. Mime Barrier now!' said Eustace quickly. I smiled. Unfortunately for the psychic pokÃ©mon, my pikachu was too fast and its attack got in before Mr. Mime could put up a barrier. So far, the battle was in my favour.  
  
'Pikapi, swift!' I said.  
  
'Chuu!' said Pikapi, blasting Mr. Mime.  
  
'Mr. Mime, you can beat it!' said Eustace. 'Doubleslap!'  
  
'Mime Mime!' said Mr. Mime. It grabbed hold of my pikachu and started slapping it with its big hands.  
  
'Chaa!' cried Pikapi.  
  
'Pikapi, thundershock!' I said.  
  
'Chuu!' said Pikapi. Its attack did a lot of damage, as Mr. Mime was in close vicinity.  
  
'Mr. Mime, confusion!' said Eustace.  
  
'Miiiime!' said Mr. Mime. It blasted Pikapi with its psychic powers, and my little pokÃ©mon fell to the ground.  
  
'Pikapi return!' I called. 'Now I choose.. Seaworth!'  
  
'Mr. Mime, confusion!' said Eustace. Mr. Mime attacked Seaworth before it could even get used to the battlefield. I gritted my teeth.  
  
'Seaworth, headbutt!' I said. Seaworth stabbed Mr. Mime with the sharp horn on its head. The psychic pokÃ©mon nearly fell over, but kept its balance. It shook its head determinedly.  
  
'OK Mr. Mime, doubleslap attack!' said Eustace.  
  
'Mister Mime!' said his pokÃ©mon.  
  
'Seel!' Seaworth cried as Mr. Mime started slapping it.  
  
'Quickly Seaworth, use your aurora beam!' I said. Seaworth charged up its ice power and blasted Mr. Mime while it was still trying to slap it. The psychic pokÃ©mon was sent flying.  
  
'Mr. Mime return!' said Eustace angrily. 'That was just the beginning of psychic pokÃ©mon power. Your ice attacks won't be useful against this. Go Psyduck!'  
  
I laughed. 'This should be easy. Everyone knows psyducks can't use their psychic powers until they get a headache! Seaworth, take down!'  
  
Eustace smiled. 'That's nothing but a myth. Psyducks who are properly trained can use their psychic powers on command. And as a psychic pokÃ©mon master, my psyduck is properly trained! Psyduck, confusion!'  
  
I gulped as Psyduck used its psychic attack to send Seaworth flying. My little seel collapsed on the ground.  
  
'Seaworth!' I cried. 'Are you OK?'  
  
'Seel!' nodded Seaworth, pulling itself up. 'Seel seel!'  
  
I smiled. 'OK Seaworth, headbutt!'  
  
'Seeeel!' said Seaworth, stabbing Psyduck with its sharp horn.  
  
'Hmm,' said Eustace as he watched his pokÃ©mon lose a lot of energy. 'Your seel is very strong. But not strong enough for Psyduck. Psyduck, confusion!'  
  
'Duck,' said Psyduck. Its power was too much for Seaworth this time, and my pokÃ©mon fainted.  
  
'Seaworth return!' I called. 'Go, Slothie!'  
  
I threw a pokÃ©ball and my giant snorlax appeared. Eustace looked impressed.  
  
'Don't let its size fool you,' he told his pokÃ©mon. 'Most snorlaxes are badly trained and can't use their moves properly!'  
  
'Snor!' Slothie narrowed its eyes.  
  
'You'll regret saying that about my snorlax,' I said. 'Slothie, body slam!'  
  
'Snorlax.' Slothie leapt into the air and came crashing down on the psyduck. Eustace just stared, shocked. Slowly, my snorlax stood up to reveal a very flat-looking pokÃ©mon.  
  
'Oh no!' Eustace exclaimed. 'Psyduck, return! Go, Exeggutor!'  
  
'Slothie, use body slam again!' I said. Slothie crushed the exeggutor beneath it.  
  
'Exeggutor, solar beam!' said Eustace. That didn't sound good.  
  
'Quick Janet,' called Sand-Cloud. 'Get Slothie to attack before Exeggutor can fire the solar beam!'  
  
I nodded. 'Slothie, headbutt now!'  
  
Slothie, being a snorlax, wasn't usually good at getting a move in quickly. But because it took so long to charge up Solar Beam, it managed to attack Exeggutor, and do a lot of damage too!  
  
'Exeggutor, fire!' said Eustace.  
  
'Exeggutor!' said his pokÃ©mon. It blasted a huge beam of light at Slothie.  
  
'Snorrrr!' Slothie cried, and was knocked to the ground. It shook its head and stood up. I smiled. Slothie was really tough.  
  
'OK Slothie, body slam!' I said. Slothie crushed Exeggutor again. When it stood up, the psychic pokÃ©mon was obviously out of energy.  
  
'Exeggutor return!' said Eustace angrily. I waited to see which pokÃ©mon he would send out next.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Eleven, Chapter Three  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Slothie the snorlax, Tailz the vulpix, Weedie the beedrill, Potow the pidgeotto, Eustace the pokÃ©mon leader of psychic  
  
'Jynx! I choose you!' Eustace tossed a pokÃ©ball and that hideous, freaky pokÃ©mon known as the jynx appeared. I shuddered.  
  
'Alright Slothie,' I said. 'If you can stand to look at it, use headbutt!'  
  
'Jynx!' said Eustace. 'Lovely kiss!'  
  
I shuddered as his pokÃ©mon grabbed hold of Slothie and gave it a big kiss. Slothie looked dizzy, then fell to the ground asleep. Eustace looked very pleased with himself. He probably found it funny that he'd sent a snorlax to sleep.  
  
'Slothie return,' I called. 'This should be an easy one. Tailz, go!'  
  
'Vulpix!' said Tailz, stepping up. I knew Tailz could do it; it had defeated Jade's jynx when I'd fought for the ice badge.. and it was a lot stronger now than it was then.  
  
'Jynx,' said Eustace. 'Use your doubleslap!'  
  
'Jyyyynx,' said his pokÃ©mon. It grabbed hold of Tailz and started slapping it.  
  
'Tailz!' I said. 'Flamethrower!'  
  
Tailz blasted a flamethrower in Jynx's face.  
  
'Jynx!' it cried. Tailz's fire had obviously done a lot of damage to the ice pokÃ©mon.  
  
'Jynx, don't let your guard down!' said Eustace. 'Ice punch now!'  
  
Jynx closed its hand into a fist and ice formed around it. It threw a punch at Tailz, and my little pokÃ©mon was knocked down.  
  
'Tailz!' I exclaimed.  
  
'Vul.. vulpix,' it puffed, pulling itself up. This jynx was obviously a lot tougher than Jade's had been.  
  
'Tailz, flamethrower!' I said.  
  
'Vuuuul PIX!' said Tailz, opening its mouth and letting out a beam of fire.  
  
'Jynx, meditate!' said Eustace. This attack didn't seem to do anything, so it was obviously a defensive attack. I wasn't sure I wanted to see what would happen next.  
  
'Tailz, try another flamethrower!' I said. Tailz did a lot of damage to Jynx, but when it fought back with an ice punch, its power was higher than ever. It managed to knock Tailz out. I unhappily rushed over and picked up my vulpix, taking it back to the sidelines. This jynx was going to be hard. I couldn't send out Potow to fight it because its ice moves would defeat my pidgeotto easily. But if I sent out Weedie, it might use a psychic attack against it..  
  
Suddenly I realised. So far, Jynx had used Lovely Kiss, Doubleslap, Ice Punch and Meditate. That made four moves. Since pokÃ©mon could only remember four moves at a time, they were the only moves Jynx would be able to use in this battle. For some reason, Eustace hadn't taught his pokÃ©mon any psychic moves! So much for being a psychic pokÃ©mon master! Still, this gave me the advantage.. Weedie would be able to win now!  
  
'Weedie, I choose you!' I said, throwing a pokÃ©ball. I hadn't used my beedrill for a while, but I was confident that it could beat this jynx.  
  
'Hmm,' said Eustace, looking at my pokÃ©mon. 'Jynx, ice punch!'  
  
Jynx used its most powerful attack on Weedie, but it didn't do very much damage.  
  
'Weedie!' I said. 'Twineedle!'  
  
Eustace gasped as my beedrill beat his jynx with its stingers. The bug- type attack caused his psychic pokÃ©mon to faint!  
  
'Jynx return!' said Eustace. 'Alright, now you're in for it. Like most gym leaders, I save the best pokÃ©mon for last. Come on out, Kadabra!'  
  
This could be tricky. This was the pokÃ©mon I'd seen knock out that boy's raticate when I entered the gym; it was obviously strong. And kadabras learnt all of the best psychic moves. Against a poison type like Weedie, they were virtually unstoppable. Still, I had to at least try.  
  
'Weedie!' I said. 'Twineedle!'  
  
My beedrill's attack did a lot of damage to the kadabra. But not enough.  
  
'Kadabra, psybeam!' said Eustace.  
  
'Kadabraaa!' said Kadabra. It held out its spoon and sent a ray of psychic energy out.  
  
'Beeedrill!' cried Weedie. I bit my lip. It wouldn't be able to last much longer.  
  
'Weedie, try another twineedle!' I said encouragingly. Weedie swooped down on the kadabra and attacked. Again, it did a lot of damage.  
  
'Kadabra, psybeam!' said Eustace. With that, my beedrill fainted. The psychic powers were too much for it. Still, it had managed to take a lot of energy off Kadabra in the short time it was battling.  
  
'Return, Weedie!' I called. 'You did well. Now it's up to you, Potow!'  
  
I threw my last pokÃ©ball and the pidgeotto I'd had since my first month of training appeared. It had brought me through a lot of tough battles, and I was confident that it could do the same now.  
  
'Potow,' I said. 'Wing attack!'  
  
'Pidgeooo!' said Potow. It slapped Kadabra with its wings. It seemed to hurt it a lot. Kadabra was weakening already.  
  
'Kadabra,' smiled Eustace. 'Recover.'  
  
I gasped as Kadabra's wounds suddenly all seemed to heal. It looked as good as new!  
  
'What!?' I exclaimed.  
  
'That's recover!' said Gelby. 'It's a move that brings back half the total health of the pokÃ©mon!'  
  
'That should be cheating,' I said angrily. How was I supposed to win against a pokÃ©mon that had moves like that!? There was only one thing I could do.. stop it from attacking. 'Potow, sand-attack!'  
  
'Pidgeo,' said Potow. It got down on the ground and kicked sand at the psychic pokÃ©mon. Kadabra tried to rub its eyes but its accuracy was already reduced.  
  
'Kadabra, psybeam!' said Eustace. Kadabra aimed a psybeam at my pidgeotto, and missed. I smiled.  
  
'Potow, quick attack!' I said. Potow swooped in and slammed into Kadabra. Eustace frowned.  
  
'Kadabra, psybeam!' he repeated. Kadabra focussed its psychic energy on the spoon in its hand, then blasted it all at Potow. This time, it hit. My pidgeotto cried out, then fell to the ground.  
  
'Oh no,' I breathed. 'It's over..'  
  
'Maybe not,' smiled Sand-Cloud.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Eleven, Chapter Four  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Potow the pidgeotto, Eustace the pokÃ©mon leader of psychic, Pikapi the pikachu  
  
I looked at my pidgeotto and gasped. It was pulling itself up, and its wings were glowing with some kind of energy. Could it possibly be that Potow was..  
  
'It's evolving!' Gelby gasped. I felt a huge grin curve on my face. It had taken Potow a while to evolve to its final stage, but now it was there. I watched as my long-time pokÃ©mon and friend, evolved into.. a pidgeot!  
  
'Wow,' I said as I gazed at the huge bird pokÃ©mon before me. 'Potow, this is so great!'  
  
'Pidgeot!' nodded Potow. I smiled.  
  
'Alright Potow,' I said. 'Let's win this! Wing attack now!'  
  
Potow slammed its new, huge wings into Kadabra.  
  
'Kadabra!' the pokÃ©mon cried, falling back.  
  
'Kadabra, get back in there with another psybeam!' said Eustace. Kadabra pulled itself up.  
  
'Not so fast,' I smiled. 'Potow, quick attack!'  
  
'Pidgeot!' said Potow. It soared over to Kadabra and knocked it back. The kadabra groaned and tried to get back up. It was no use.. my pidgeot's newfound powers were too much for it. Eustace sighed.  
  
'Kadabra return!' he said, holding out his pokÃ©ball. He looked up at me. 'Well done, Janet. I'm afraid that I must admit defeat. You are a truly skilled trainer, and you should be very proud of all those pokÃ©mon of yours.. especially that pidgeot.'  
  
I smiled at Potow. It smiled back.  
  
'I present you with this psychic badge,' said Eustace, holding out the small badge. I took it happily.  
  
'Thanks so much!' I smiled. That made ten badges! I was officially two thirds of the way there!  
  
After healing my pokÃ©mon at the PokÃ©Centre, we left Cerebral City and set out for another long day of travelling. I hoped to find some pokÃ©mon to catch, or at least a trainer to battle. I only have five more badges to earn, and I really had to make sure that my pokÃ©mon were in top-notch fighting condition for when I battled at the PokÃ©mon League!  
  
A few hours passed without any sign of any pokÃ©mon! It seemed that the road we were walking down was pretty much deserted. However, finally a trainer did turn up. She was a girl about my age, and was sitting on the side of the road, feeding two young but strong-looking pikachus. I walked over to her.  
  
'Hi,' I said. 'You a trainer?'  
  
'Yeah,' the girl smiled. 'My name's Threep. I'm a pikachu trainer!'  
  
'A pikachu trainer?' I asked. I laughed. 'How cool! My name's Janet.. I'm just a regular trainer.'  
  
The girl smiled. 'I love pokÃ©mon, but there's no pokÃ©mon I love more than pikachus! I've got four of them with my right now.. Sparkle and Pikkapikka, come out!'  
  
I laughed as she opened up two pokÃ©balls and two more pikachus appeared. They didn't look as strong as the other two, but they were very cute!  
  
'Meet Sparkle and Pikkapikka,' she smiled. She looked at the first two who were out. 'These are Sparksquek, and the creatively named Pikachu.'  
  
I laughed. 'I've got a pikachu too! Pikapi!'  
  
I threw a pokÃ©ball and my own pikachu appeared.  
  
'Pika!' it said happily, seeing the four pikachus before it. I smiled as it ran over to them and started talking to them.  
  
'Your pikachu looks very strong,' said Threep.  
  
'Thanks,' I smiled. 'I've had it for a really long time, it was one of the first pokÃ©mon I caught.'  
  
Threep smiled. 'Sparksquek was the first pokÃ©mon I caught. Well, that's not entirely true.. it was actually given to me, but it's the first pokÃ©mon I ever got. Ever since I got Sparksquek, I've devoted all my training time to pikachus!'  
  
'That's cool,' I said. 'Are you going to be a pikachu breeder?'  
  
'I'd love to!' said Threep. 'Pikachu breeding doesn't seem to be very common, most pikachus are caught in the wild. So I'd love to become a pikachu breeder, that'd be so fun! But first I want to learn all I can about pikachus. Oh, and I have two raichus as well!'  
  
I smiled as she took out her final two pokÃ©balls and released two raichus.  
  
'Meet Thundachu and.. Raichu!' said Threep. I laughed.  
  
'Wow, those raichus look really strong,' I said.  
  
'Raichus are strong pokÃ©mon,' nodded Threep. 'But I love pikachus, they're so cute!'  
  
'Rai!' said Thundachu.  
  
Threep laughed. 'Not that raichus aren't too!'  
  
'That reminds me,' I said. 'I'm going to evolve Pikapi soon!'  
  
'Oh, you're evolving your pikachu?' Threep asked. I nodded. 'Wow, I know all about evolving pikachus, I can help you find out just the right time for it to evolve!'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Eleven, Chapter Five  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Pikapi the pikachu, Threep the pikachu trainer  
  
I smiled. 'So how exactly do you know when it's best to evolve a pikachu?'  
  
'Well, first things first,' said Threep. 'Do you have a thunder stone?'  
  
I laughed. 'Yeah.'  
  
Sand-Cloud dug into our backpack and pulled out the thunder stone I'd been given nearly a year ago. She handed it to Threep.  
  
'Yep, that's an authentic thunder stone alright,' she said. She looked at me. 'There are lots of counterfeit evolution stones going around these days.'  
  
'Weird,' I said. 'Why would you counterfeit evolution stones?'  
  
'Because they're so valuable,' said Threep. 'Items that cause a pokÃ©mon to grow an evolutionary level are really precious, and they sell for very high prices. Did you buy this stone?'  
  
'No,' I said. 'I.. found it.'  
  
I didn't want to bother explaining the whole story of how we'd helped Officer Jenny stop Ace and Kat from stealing evolution stones from that cave near Citrus City, and had ended up being given one of each stone as a thank-you.  
  
'You were lucky,' said Threep. 'I had to buy the stones I used to evolve Thundachu and Raichu. Anyway, back to the point. Which moves does Pikapi know?'  
  
I thought for a moment. 'Thundershock, Swift, Thunderwave and Quick Attack.'  
  
'OK,' said Threep. 'So it's still got Thunder to learn. Do you want it to learn Thunder? It's a really powerful move, but its accuracy isn't as high as the other electric attacks.'  
  
'I know,' I nodded. 'But Thunder's the strongest electric move, and I want Pikapi to be able to use it.'  
  
Threep nodded. 'OK then, let's see how long Pikapi has until it learns Thunder!'  
  
I smiled as she walked over to my little pikachu.  
  
'Hiya Pikapi,' she said, holding out her hand for it to sniff.  
  
'Chu?' it asked, tilting its head.  
  
'OK Pikapi,' smiled Threep. 'I want you to give me your highest electric attack!'  
  
'Pi.. pi?' Pikapi asked uncertainly.  
  
'Hang on,' I said. 'You want Pikapi to electrocute you!?'  
  
Threep laughed. 'Not ME literally.' She took out a small electronic device. 'I have this meter that reads an electric pokÃ©mon's voltage levels. I should be able to see what Pikapi's maximum potential for electric attacks is.'  
  
'Um, alright,' I said. Threep laughed and pulled out two wires from the device. She put one to each of Pikapi's cheeks.  
  
'Pikapi,' she said. 'I want you to use all the electricity you can find.'  
  
Pikapi looked at me. 'Chu chu?'  
  
'Go on,' I smiled. 'Use all your power!'  
  
'Pi,' shrugged Pikapi. It turned back to Threep. Then it narrowed its eyes, concentrating on its electric powers. Electricity started buzzing around its cheeks. 'Pi.. ka... CHUUUUUU!!!!!'  
  
Electricity ran from Pikapi's cheeks, down the wires to the device. A meter started to move up and down. Threep watched it with great interest. Finally, Pikapi stopped. It puffed.  
  
'Good work Pikapi,' I said. It smiled. I looked to Threep. 'Well?'  
  
'It won't be long,' she smiled. 'Pikapi's electricity is more than ten thousand volts, so it can easily master Thunderbolt. I think it will only need a few more battles before it builds up enough energy to use Thunder.'  
  
'Wow,' I said. 'You worked out all that from that little meter?'  
  
Threep laughed. 'Sort of. This device just measures the voltage of the electric pokÃ©mon. But from that you can make logical guesses about levels and experience.'  
  
I smiled. 'Cool. Now all I need is to get Pikapi to learn Thunder!'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Eleven, Chapter Six  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Pikapi the pikachu, Threep the pikachu trainer  
  
Threep tagged along with us as we continued down the road, looking for someone to battle. After a long day of travelling, though, we decided it was best to stop for the night. So after staying a night at a PokÃ©Centre, we set out once again.  
  
'Oh good, another loser for me to beat!'  
  
I'd know that voice anywhere. Sure enough, it was Mitch.  
  
'So you want a battle?' I asked.  
  
'Of course I want a battle, I wouldn't lower myself to talking to you for the fun of it,' said Mitch. 'Come on, let's start!'  
  
'Pikapi, I choose you!' I said. I threw a pokÃ©ball and my pikachu emerged.  
  
'Hmph, this should be easy,' said Mitch. He took out a pokÃ©ball. 'Venusaur, go!'  
  
This would be hard. Venusaur was the first pokÃ©mon Mitch ever got. And electric attacks weren't very effective against grass-types. But Pikapi would have to handle it.  
  
'OK Pikapi,' I said. 'Charge up your electricity with a thunderwave!'  
  
'Chu,' said Pikapi. It sent out a low-voltage electric wave. Venusaur shook it off; the attack had failed. I bit my lip.  
  
'You're gonna have to do better than that!' said Mitch. 'Venusaur, razor leaf!'  
  
'VenuSAUR!' roared his pokÃ©mon. A gust of razor-sharp leaves flew out of the flower on its back, and slammed into Pikapi. My pokÃ©mon fell over, then pulled itself up and shook its head.  
  
'Hang in there Pikapi,' I said. 'Try another thunderwave!'  
  
This time, the attack worked; Venusaur was paralysed!  
  
'Venusaur, body slam!' said Mitch. His pokÃ©mon tried to move but couldn't, thanks to Pikapi's thunderwave.  
  
'OK Pikapi,' I said. 'Now get that voltage up higher and try a thundershock!'  
  
'Pikachu,' said Pikapi. It concentrated its electricity to its cheeks and sent it out at Venusaur. It didn't do a lot of damage, but what I really wanted it to do was bring my pikachu's electric powers up.  
  
'Venusaur, vine whip!' said Mitch. This time, his pokÃ©mon managed to move. It extended its vines and slapped Pikapi with them.  
  
'Chuuu!' it cried. This Venusaur was really strong, but if Pikapi could master Thunder before it did too much damage.. I'd win easily.  
  
'Pikapi, keep that thundershock going!' I said. 'Try and build up more electricity!'  
  
'Pika!' said Pikapi. It threw another thundershock at Venusaur. This time it did a bit more damage, but still not a lot.  
  
'Venusaur, razor leaf!'  
  
Again, Venusaur couldn't move. Mitch was getting angry.  
  
'Pikapi, thundershock!'  
  
'Venusaur, body slam!'  
  
When Venusaur didn't move again, Mitch angrily recalled it to its pokÃ©ball.  
  
'That stupid electric rat will pay for that,' he said. 'Let's see how it handles this. Go, Raichu!'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Eleven, Chapter Seven  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Pikapi the pikachu, Threep the pikachu trainer, Mitch Orien  
  
'Go, Raichu!'  
  
I wasn't sure how the battle was going to turn out now. Pikapi had to get its electricity up to a high voltage, but against a raichu, its own evolved form.. it might lose confidence in its own abilities. I couldn't let that happen.  
  
'Pikapi!' I said. 'Whatever happens, don't let that fat rat beat you! You're the strongest 'chu around here, you just have to show it. Full power thundershock!'  
  
'PIKACHU!' shouted Pikapi. It thundershocked Raichu. Hardly any damage seemed to have been done.  
  
'Rai,' yawned Raichu. Pikapi frowned.  
  
'Raichu, show that pikachu how pathetic it really is!' said Mitch. 'Thunderbolt attack, now!'  
  
'Rai, rai, rai CHU!' said Raichu. It got ready to throw a powerful electric bolt at Pikapi. Suddenly I thought of something.  
  
'Pikapi!' I said. 'Let it hit your tail! Try and absorb the energy!'  
  
'Pika!' nodded Pikapi happily. As the attack approached, it stuck out its tail. The thunderbolt attack hit and its energy travelled down Pikapi's thunderbolt-shaped tail. It cried out, but kept its concentration and before long the attack was over. Pikapi turned around determinedly. Mitch blinked.  
  
'It actually worked..' I breathed. I smiled. 'OK Pikapi, use that power boost to show that Raichu a full-voltage THUNDER ATTACK!'  
  
'Pika pika,' grinned Pikapi. 'Pika pika pikaaaa...'  
  
It leapt into the air as the electric waves started building up around its cheeks. Sparks started flying from its body. Suddenly, there was a huge crash of thunder and an enormous lightning bolt zapped Raichu.  
  
'RAAAAAAIIIIIIII!' it squealed, and dropped to the ground, burnt out from the electric energy.  
  
'Woah..' I was awed. I had no idea how powerful Thunder could be. Mitch's raichu obviously wasn't at a very high level compared to Pikapi. Evolution meant nothing in cases like that.  
  
'R..r... raichu return..' said Mitch, looking quite scared. He looked at me. 'You cheated!'  
  
I had to laugh. So did Pikapi.  
  
'How could I have cheated?' I asked.  
  
'Your stupid pikachu stole my raichu's energy!' he said.  
  
'That wasn't cheating,' I smiled. 'I didn't even know if it would work, but I knew Pikapi would try its best to full it off.'  
  
'Oooh, isn't that touching!' said Mitch sarcastically. 'I hate to tell you, but trying random tactics because you don't know what you're doing, isn't going to win you any badges!'  
  
'Well it won a battle against your raichu,' I pointed out.  
  
'How many badges have you got, anyway?' Mitch asked.  
  
I smiled. 'Ten.'  
  
'Pfft,' said Mitch. 'I've got twelve. I'll be a pokÃ©mon master within a few months!'  
  
With that, he laughed and walked away. I wasn't sure whether to be happy or not. I was overjoyed that Pikapi had mastered Thunder and that I'd outsmarted Mitch, but the fact that he had two more badges than me, and thus needed only three more to make it to the PokÃ©mon League.. had really worried me. He was my number one rival after all, and I really wanted to be able to beat him in becoming a pokÃ©mon master. Still, I couldn't let that worry me. I had more important things to think about!  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Eleven, Chapter Eight  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Pikapi the pikachu, Threep the pikachu trainer  
  
'Pikapi,' I said, walking over to my little pokÃ©mon. I bent down. 'I'm really impressed with what you did back there.'  
  
'Pikachu,' shrugged Pikapi modestly. I laughed and patted it on the head.  
  
'So what do you say?' I asked, taking out my thunder stone. 'Now that you've learnt to use Thunder, do you think it's time to extend your powers?'  
  
Pikapi scratched its head for a moment, then shrugged. 'Pi.'  
  
'Pikapi!' I laughed. 'Come on, this is an important decision! Once you become a raichu, you're stuck that way forever. And stone evolutions are really difficult decisions since they're so abrupt. You have to think about it seriously, Pikapi. Come on, what do you say?'  
  
'Pi.. pika,' said Pikapi simply. I sighed.  
  
'Well think about that raichu today,' I said. 'Do you want to become bigger and stronger like it, or would you prefer to stay the way you are now, as the pikachu you've become familiar with?'  
  
Pikapi paused, in thought.  
  
'You can take as much time as you want to think about it,' I said. 'And I don't mind which you choose, it's your decision.'  
  
Pikapi nodded, then looked up at me. It took a deep breath, then gestured to the stone in my hand.  
  
'You want to evolve?' I asked.  
  
'Pikachu,' it nodded.  
  
I smiled. 'You sure?'  
  
'Pika,' it nodded again.  
  
'OK,' I said. I too took a deep breath. Pikapi had been a pikachu ever since the day I met it almost a year ago.. it would be so strange to see it as a raichu. But I was ready if it was. 'Alright Pikapi, enjoy the last moments of being able to say your name.'  
  
Pikapi laughed. 'Pikapi!'  
  
I smiled. 'Well, here goes.'  
  
I took the thunder stone and pressed it to Pikapi's body. I watched as the stone disappeared and Pikapi grew. Its fur turned to an orange-brown shade, the spots on its cheeks got bigger and turned yellow. Its ears curled around at the end and changed colour. Its tail grew longer and thinner with a big lightning bolt on the end. Finally, Pikapi had become a raichu!  
  
'Wow,' I smiled, looking at Pikapi in its new body.  
  
'Rai rai!' it smiled back.  
  
'So what do you think, was the evolution worth it?' I asked.  
  
Electricity started sparking from Pikapi's cheeks. 'Raichu!'  
  
I smiled again. I was so happy that my pikachu had finally evolved. Now getting those last five badges would be easy!  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Eleven, Chapter Nine  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Bybee the rattata, Tailz the vulpix  
  
That night, we stayed at a PokÃ©mon Centre. I decided to switch Weedie for Bybee. Now that Pikapi had evolved, I wanted my rattata, who I had also had for a very long time, to evolve too. Poor Bybee hadn't ever got as much experience as my other pokÃ©mon, and I was determined to make up for that now. When we headed out again the next day, Threep decided to leave us. I thanked her again for helping me to understand Pikapi more, and we said our goodbyes.  
  
It wasn't long after we'd been travelling, that I came across Josh. He always turned up in the middle of nowhere, and it was always good to battle our old friend, so naturally I challenged him to a battle.  
  
'Sure, Janet,' he said. 'How about we use two pokÃ©mon each?'  
  
Josh was the only trainer I knew who didn't go for full, six-on-six battles. It was probably because he only trained bug pokÃ©mon, and so he didn't have a very big variety. I nodded. 'Sounds good.' I knew which pokÃ©mon I was going to use. 'Go Bybee!'  
  
'Venomoth, I choose you,' said Josh, throwing a pokÃ©ball. I cringed. I couldn't stand venomoths, not since I'd seen this one last time.  
  
'Alright Bybee, super fang attack!' I said.  
  
'Rrrrrattata!' said Bybee, sinking its teeth into Venomoth. A lot of its energy was drained.  
  
'Venomoth, fight back with a psybeam!'  
  
'Raaaat!' cried Bybee, knocked back.  
  
'Bybee, hang in there! Hyper fang attack now!'  
  
'That won't be enough to defeat Venomoth! Venomoth, fire another psybeam!'  
  
'Veno!' said his pokÃ©mon, letting its psychic energy out on Bybee.  
  
'Bybee quickly, another hyper fang should do it!'  
  
'Oh no it won't! Venomoth, finish it off with confusion!'  
  
I sighed as Venomoth's psychic abilities knocked Bybee right out.  
  
'Bybee return!' I called. I looked down at my vulpix. 'OK Tailz, your turn.'  
  
'Pix,' smiled Tailz, stepping forward.  
  
'That vulpix may be strong but it's not strong enough to beat Venomoth! OK Venomoth, tackle attack!'  
  
Venomoth knocked Tailz to the ground.  
  
'Tailz, flamethrower!' I said. Tailz opened its mouth and breathed out a blast of fire, smothering Venomoth in flames. The big bug pokÃ©mon fell to the ground.  
  
'Venomoth return! I choose.. Pinsir!'  
  
'Don't worry Tailz, your fire attacks will beat that bug!' I said. 'Flamethrower!'  
  
'Vuuuul!' said Tailz, again breathing fire all over Josh's pokÃ©mon.  
  
'You'll have to do better than that,' said Josh. 'Pinsir, vicegrip!'  
  
Pinsir grabbed Tailz in its horns and crushed. I had to look away as my vulpix cried out in pain. I bit my lip. A pinsir was too tough for my little vulpix, and I knew it.  
  
'Tailz, that's enough,' I said. 'Josh, I give up.'  
  
'That's not like you Janet, you don't normally give up,' said Josh as his pinsir let go of Tailz.  
  
'I know,' I said. I walked over to my vulpix and pulled it into my arms. 'But Tailz is still really young, and I don't like seeing it get hurt.'  
  
Josh nodded.  
  
'And your pinsir is really powerful,' I added. Josh smiled, and recalled his pokÃ©mon.  
  
'Thanks,' he smiled. 'Well, I'll see you later. Keep training hard, Janet!'  
  
'You too,' I said with a wave. He just laughed and walked away. I hugged Tailz comfortingly. Josh's pokÃ©mon were getting really powerful these days. I'd never known that bug pokÃ©mon could be so strong..  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Eleven, Chapter Ten  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Seaworth the seel, Pikapi the raichu  
  
'Oooodish..'  
  
'Hey, did you hear that?' Gelby asked.  
  
'Yeah,' I smiled. 'An oddish! It's about time I caught another pokÃ©mon, too!'  
  
I looked around, and sure enough there was an oddish peering through the bushes on the side of the road. I looked down at the vulpix in my arms and realised it was still weak from the battle with Josh. I took out a pokÃ©ball.  
  
'Seaworth!' I said. 'Go!'  
  
I threw the pokÃ©ball and my seel appeared. A dirt road wasn't the best place for a water-dwelling pokÃ©mon to battle, but Seaworth could handle it.  
  
'OK Seaworth, aurora beam!' I said.  
  
'Seeeel!' said Seaworth, and sent out a multi-coloured beam. It hit the oddish.  
  
'Oooodish! Oddish!' it cried, falling back. Tears in its eyes, it looked up at me.  
  
'Aww, the poor thing,' said Gelby.  
  
'It'll be happy once it gets its new master,' I smiled. I threw a spare pokÃ©ball. 'PokÃ©ball go!'  
  
'O.. dish!' said Oddish. It leapt out of the way and evaded my pokÃ©ball.  
  
'Hmm,' I said. 'It's speedy. I'll need something to slow it down.. hey I know, go Pikapi!'  
  
I threw another pokÃ©ball and my newly-evolved raichu appeared. The oddish backed away, afraid.  
  
'Pikapi, thunderwave!' I said.  
  
'Rai!' said Pikapi. It hit the oddish with its thunderwave, paralysing it.  
  
'That's better,' I smiled. 'PokÃ©ball, go!'  
  
I threw my pokÃ©ball and this time, the oddish was sucked in. The ball shook for a while, then the light went out and the ball was still. With a smile, I walked over and picked it up.  
  
'Yeah, I got an oddish!' I said.  
  
'Good work,' said Sand-Cloud. I smiled. I named my new pokÃ©mon "Fern", and it was transferred to storage on my PC.  
  
'Now let's get going,' I said. 'We've got to try and find out where the next gym is!'  
  
When we reached the next town later that night, I put my pokÃ©mon in to be healed. While I was waiting for Nurse Joy to return with them, I looked at the map of the local area on the wall.  
  
'Hmm..' I said. 'The closest gym looks like the one in Gem Village.'  
  
'A village?' Sand-Cloud asked. 'It seems a bit strange to have a pokÃ©mon gym in a place as small as a village.'  
  
'Oh well, a gym is a gym,' I smiled. After getting my pokÃ©mon back from Nurse Joy, we stayed in the PokÃ©mon Centre for the night, ready to set out for Gem Village the next day.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Eleven, Chapter Eleven  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu  
  
'Janet!!'  
  
'Oh no,' groaned Sand-Cloud. I laughed as Luke ran towards us. His jigglypuff was at his side; he'd obviously decided to keep it outside its pokÃ©ball.  
  
'Hi Luke,' I smiled.  
  
'Hi!' he said. 'Guess what? Jigglypuff's getting better and better at singing all the time!'  
  
'Wow, that's great,' I said, looking down at the pink blob of a pokÃ©mon.  
  
'Jiggly!' it said. I smiled.  
  
'I knew all my hard work teaching it to sing would pay off!' said Luke.  
  
'Hard work!?' Sand-Cloud exclaimed. 'It wasn't hard work, it was torture! We had to listen to you sing!'  
  
'Oh come on, you know you liked it,' said Luke.  
  
'Yeah.. that's it,' said Sand-Cloud, rolling her eyes.  
  
'So where are you heading?' I asked my friend, deciding to change the topic.  
  
'I'm not entirely sure,' said Luke. 'I'm just kind of walking around.'  
  
I laughed. 'Sounds like us most of the time. We're heading to Gem Village if you want to come along.'  
  
'Shh!' said Sand-Cloud. 'Don't ask him that!'  
  
Luke laughed. 'What's at Gem Village? A gym?'  
  
'Yeah,' I smiled. 'I'm going to try and get my eleventh badge!'  
  
'Really?' Luke asked. 'I have ten badges too!'  
  
'That's cool,' I said. 'So have you got the one from Gem Village?'  
  
'No,' said Luke. 'Which type does the gym leader there use, anyway?'  
  
'Uhh..' I said, realising I hadn't asked anyone. 'I don't know.'  
  
'You're an idiot Janet,' laughed Luke. 'You're going to go to a gym without even knowing what type of pokÃ©mon the leader uses?'  
  
'Well, sort of,' I smiled. 'I'll ask someone once we get to the village.'  
  
Luke rolled his eyes. 'Yeah, but it's best to know before that, so you can concentrate on training the pokÃ©mon you're going to use in the battle.'  
  
'Well, I'm concentrating on training Bybee,' I said. 'I want it to evolve.'  
  
'Bybee?' Luke asked. 'Isn't it that rattata you caught ages ago?'  
  
'Yeah,' I nodded.  
  
'It hasn't evolved yet?' Luke asked.  
  
'Oh shut up,' I smiled.  
  
'Yes, that's a good idea,' said Sand-Cloud. 'Can we stop talking and get walking?'  
  
I laughed. 'Oh alright.'  
  
We started walking, heading for Gem Village. I couldn't wait to be able to battle for my next badge!  
  
~Janet~  
  
END OF PART ELEVEN 


	14. Part Twelve

Part Twelve, Chapter One  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson  
  
In the three weeks it took us to get to Gem Village, to my joy Bybee did evolve! With my newly-evolved raticate trained well, I entered the small village determined to win my next badge.  
  
The PokÃ©mon Centre was a very tiny building. There were hardly any trainers inside; PokÃ©Centres were usually crowded buildings. But what with Gem Village being such a small place, it was understandable that the PokÃ©mon Centre was also small. I had to wonder if Gem Village would even have a PokÃ©mon Centre if it wasn't compulsory that all towns (or villages!) with gyms had to have PokÃ©mon Centres.  
  
'Hi Nurse Joy,' I smiled. 'Can you heal my pokÃ©mon for me!'  
  
'Certainly,' said Joy, taking my five pokÃ©balls and Tailz from me. Luke also gave her his pokÃ©balls and Jigglypuff. The four of us then sat down to wait for our pokÃ©mon to be healed.  
  
'Hey, look at this,' said Sand-Cloud. She picked up a brochure off the table. 'This place has some really good caves where you can find all sorts of rare pokÃ©mon!'  
  
'Dugtrios!' exclaimed Luke. Everyone looked at him. 'Um, anyway..'  
  
I laughed. Sand-Cloud flicked through the brochure some more.  
  
'Wow, listen to this!' she said. 'Apparently fossils of extinct pokÃ©mon were found in there! According to this, some scientists have found ways to actually bring fossils back to life so that trainers can train extinct pokÃ©mon!'  
  
'Woah..' I breathed. 'That's so cool! Maybe I can find an omanyte in there!'  
  
Sand-Cloud laughed. 'Well, you never know. It says that the caves are open to visitors, and if you find any pokÃ©mon - including fossils - you're allowed to keep them!'  
  
'This just keeps getting better!' I said. Sand-Cloud smiled.  
  
'Guess what?' Luke asked, picking up a different brochure. 'So much for your raticate, this place's gym leader is a rock-type trainer!'  
  
'Oh no!' I moaned. I'd really wanted to use Bybee! But it'd be useless against rock types! 'Oh, I should have guessed, I mean.. the place is called GEM Town!'  
  
Luke laughed. 'What's more, this means I don't have a badge to earn here.'  
  
'Huh?' I asked, confused.  
  
'I already won a rock badge,' said Luke. 'I guess the gym must have moved since then.'  
  
'Oh,' I said. 'Like how the electric gym got moved. I wonder why this one moved.'  
  
'Who knows,' said Sand-Cloud. 'What's important is that you beat that gym leader. Make sure you choose the best pokÃ©mon to take. Remember, grass and water types are best against rock.'  
  
I nodded. 'I already know which ones to take.'  
  
'Janet, Luke, your pokÃ©mon are ready!' Nurse Joy called. We got up and collected our pokÃ©mon. I went over to the PC and rearranged my team. The six pokÃ©mon I ended up taking with me were Raus, Seaworth, Evy, Knotty, Catafree and Tailz. I was going to take Fern instead of Catafree, but since I hadn't actually battled with it I decided not to. And besides, although grass types were strong against rock types, taking three grass types with me was pretty unbalanced. So I just took the pokÃ©mon I'd decided on, and with my friends at my side, entered the gym.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Twelve, Chapter Two  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Knotty the tangela, Seaworth the seel, Evy the vaporeon  
  
'My name's Janet from Team Yellow, and I'm here to earn a badge!'  
  
'Yeah, I kind of guessed,' said the guy at the other side of the battlefield. 'Er, the part about the badge, that is.'  
  
I laughed. 'Yeah, I didn't think I was that famous.'  
  
'Well my name's James,' said the guy. 'I'm the gym leader of Gem Village. You look like an experienced trainer, I take it you know all the rules?'  
  
'Yeah,' I nodded.  
  
'Then we might as well start,' said James. 'I choose.. Rhyhorn!'  
  
'Alright.. Knotty, I choose you!' I said, throwing a pokÃ©ball.  
  
'Wow, a tangela,' said James. 'No one uses tangelas!'  
  
'I know!' I moaned. 'But that's because they don't understand their power! Knotty, vine whip!'  
  
'Tan!' said Knotty, slapping Rhyhorn with its vines. Being a grass attack, it did a lot of damage to the rock pokÃ©mon. But neither Rhyhorn or James were giving up.  
  
'Rhyhorn, horn attack!' said James.  
  
'Rhy!' said Rhyhorn. It charged at Knotty and stabbed it with its horn.  
  
'Knotty, absorb!' I said. My tangela began to suck Rhyhorn's energy. Absorb wasn't normally a very powerful attack, but against a rock type it was amazing.  
  
'Rhyhorn, tackle now!' said James. His rhyhorn slammed into Knotty and knocked off the damage that it had gained from its previous move.  
  
'Knotty, absorb that energy back!' I said.  
  
'Ahhh!' moaned James as Knotty's health was almost completely restored. 'This is useless, Rhyhorn just use your horn drill!'  
  
'Rhyhorn!' said his pokÃ©mon. The horn on its head started spinning around. I knew this move all too well by now. Knotty was in trouble.  
  
'Tangelaaaa!' Knotty squealed as the move connected. It collapsed on the ground in one hit.  
  
'Knotty return,' I called with a sigh. 'Alright Seaworth, it's your turn!'  
  
'A seel?' James asked. 'Interesting choice. Rhyhorn, horn attack!'  
  
'That's no match for you, Seaworth!' I said. 'Aurora beam!'  
  
'Seeel!' said Seaworth, shooting out a colourful beam. Rhyhorn fainted!  
  
'Rhyhorn return,' said James. 'That seel is stronger than I expected. But that's no problem for my next pokÃ©mon! Go Graveler!'  
  
'Seaworth, keep up that aurora beam!' I said. 'Ice moves will knock down these rock pokÃ©mon easily!'  
  
Seaworth nodded and fired another aurora beam. Graveler took a lot of damage.  
  
'Graveler, rock throw!' said James.  
  
'Seel!' cried Seaworth.  
  
'Seaworth, use aurora beam again!' I said. Seaworth's attack hit Graveler and again hurt it a lot. But that rock pokÃ©mon was tough.  
  
'Graveler, earthquake!' said James.  
  
'Yeah!' I heard Luke cheer. I looked at him. 'Er, I mean, oh no!'  
  
I couldn't help smiling. But when I turned back to my pokÃ©mon, the smile faded from my face. Graveler had done a lot of damage to my little seel. But, it had also lost a lot of health from Seaworth's previous attacks. It wouldn't take much more to knock it out.  
  
'Seaworth, aurora beam!' I said.  
  
'OK Graveler, it's time,' said James. 'Explosion!'  
  
'Gravel graveler!' said his pokÃ©mon. It concentrated all its energy, and there was an enormous explosion.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Twelve, Chapter Three  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Seaworth the seel, Evy the vaporeon, Raus the venusaur, James the pokÃ©mon leader of rock  
  
Seaworth was passed out on the ground, its energy completely wiped out.  
  
'Oh no!' I exclaimed. 'Seaworth, you poor thing! Return now!'  
  
As the rest of the smoke from Graveler's explosion cleared, I saw that Graveler had fainted too.  
  
'Graveler return!' called James. 'Onix, I choose you!'  
  
'Alright,' I said. 'Evy, your turn!'  
  
'OK Onix, slam attack now! Squash that vaporeon!' said James.  
  
'Oooonix!' said Onix. It crashed to the ground, knocking a lot of HP off Evy.  
  
'Evy, hang in there,' I said. 'Aurora beam!'  
  
Evy fired its own version of the attack Seaworth had used to take most of Graveler's energy away. Evy wasn't at as high a level as Seaworth, but as an evolved pokÃ©mon its attack power was higher.. so its aurora beam was about the same strength as Seaworth's. It hurt onix a lot.  
  
'Onix, rock throw!' said James.  
  
'Evy, you know what to do!' I said. 'Aurora beam!'  
  
'Poreon!' said Evy.  
  
'Alright Onix, let's wrap this up,' smiled James. 'Bind attack now!'  
  
Onix coiled itself around my vaporeon and squeezed it, crushing it and draining its power rapidly. Evy wasn't doing too well here..  
  
'Evy return!' I called. My vaporeon still needed a lot of training. 'OK Raus, I choose you!'  
  
'Oops, bad move,' smiled James. 'Earthquake!'  
  
'Oops is right,' I muttered. How could I have forgotten that Raus was a poison-type as well as a grass-type? If Onix kept using that earthquake attack, Raus would faint in no time. But not if Raus knocked out that onix first!  
  
'Raus, razor leaf!' I said.  
  
'Saur!' said Raus. Onix cried out as my pokÃ©mon's sharp leaves cut into its rock-hard skin.  
  
'Onix, earthquake!' said James. Raus was really hurt by Onix's attack, but I knew my venusaur wouldn't give up.  
  
'Raus, razor leaf again!' I said. This time, Onix couldn't handle the power of the grass attack. It fainted. I smiled. 'Great work Raus!'  
  
'Venusaur,' smiled Raus.  
  
'Onix return!' called James. 'OK, now you're in for it, Venusaur. I guess you thought you could get through with grass attacks because all rock types are also ground types, right? Well, I'm afraid you're very wrong. Time to unleash the real power of rock pokÃ©mon! May I present, the champion of all rock pokÃ©mon, an ancient beast not trained by regular trainers for hundreds of years! I choose... Aerodactyl!!!'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Twelve, Chapter Four  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Raus the venusaur, James the pokÃ©mon leader of rock  
  
'Well, this doesn't look good,' I commented. James laughed. Raus glared up at the huge rock bird. This was going to be tricky. If Aerodactyl was a flying type, Raus's grass attacks would be almost useless against it. If only I'd thought of that earlier, I wouldn't have saved Seaworth or Evy for their aurora beams. But there was nothing I could do about that. Raus had to be able to win this, somehow.  
  
'Raus, razor leaf!' I said.  
  
'You'll have to do better than that,' said James. 'Aerodactyl, wing attack!'  
  
Raus cried out as Aerodactyl hit it with its rock-hard wings.  
  
'Raus, leech seed!' I said. That would at least guarantee some damage, as well as keep Raus in there longer. I smiled as Aerodactyl was seeded.  
  
'Don't let that bother you Aerodactyl,' said James. 'Take down now!'  
  
'Aeeeero!' screeched Aerodactyl. It swooped down to Raus and knocked it over. Raus angrily threw it off, managing to take off a few of its health points. But Aerodactyl had drained a lot of Raus's energy, and it was getting weak.  
  
'Raus, razor leaf!' I said.  
  
'Let's wipe this venusaur out,' said James. 'Hyper beam attack!'  
  
I gasped. Hyper beam!? This was going to hurt..  
  
Aerodactyl let out a huge explosion of power, knocking Raus right out of the battlefield. I ran over to my venusaur.  
  
'Raus!' I exclaimed. 'Raus, are you OK?'  
  
'Saur,' it said. It pulled itself up. 'Venusaur!'  
  
'Raus, you can't battle anymore,' I said. 'Don't worry, Catafree can do it. Come on, back in your pokÃ©ball.'  
  
I held out my pokÃ©ball to recall Raus. My venusaur stubbornly resisted the beam.  
  
'Raus, I mean it,' I said. 'You're too weak, you'll only get yourself hurt. Catafree can beat that Aerodactyl, don't worry about it.'  
  
'Saur!' said Raus, shaking its head. It started running back into the arena. I sighed.  
  
'Janet, you've got to be careful about using Raus,' Sand-Cloud reminded me. 'You know it refuses to give up.'  
  
I nodded. And now there was nothing I could do but wait for Aerodactyl to knock Raus out. I didn't want that to be the way I had to do things, but I had no other choice.  
  
'You've got to learn when to give up, Venusaur,' said James. I wondered why his aerodactyl wasn't attacking yet, then remembered that after using hyper beam, a pokÃ©mon had to recharge its energy. Maybe there was still hope for Raus, then..  
  
'Ve.. nu.. saur...' Raus puffed, trying to gather all its energy to attack. Suddenly I thought I saw a kind of glow coming from the middle of the flower on its back. What was going on? I blinked and looked closer. Sure enough, there was some kind of light gathering on that flower. I didn't understand.. what was happening?  
  
Then I remembered a venusaur I'd seen a few months ago. My friend Allin had been battling another trainer named Dave, who had ordered his venusaur to use solar beam. When it had charged up its attack, it looked just like the light that was gathering on Raus's back now. Was it possible that Raus had learnt solar beam?  
  
'Janet..' breathed Gelby. 'You know what that is..'  
  
'It's solar beam!' I smiled. It really was. I was so happy, my venusaur had learnt the most powerful of all grass-type attacks! With a move that strong against it, Aerodactyl's flying type would mean nothing. All that mattered now was, which pokÃ©mon would finish charging their energy first? I knew that aerodactyls were very speedy pokÃ©mon, but could they gather all their energy faster than venusaurs could charge solar beams?  
  
'Aerodactyl!' said James. 'Hurry up, that thing's gonna use solar beam!'  
  
I smiled, looking at Raus. It was nearly done..  
  
'Venu..' it said, looking up at Aerodactyl. 'Venu venu venu...'  
  
'Oh no,' said James. His aerodactyl opened its eyes wide as it saw the beam of light blast out from the flower on Raus's back. It soared through the air at an incredible speed and hit Aerodactyl, knocking it right to the other side of the gym. It fell to the ground, defeated.  
  
'Yeah!' I cheered. 'Go Raus! You're the best!'  
  
'Venusaur,' smiled Raus. James just stared at his fainted aerodactyl, shocked. He held out a pokÃ©ball.  
  
'Aerodactyl return,' he called. He sighed and looked at me. 'Well, I guess you win.'  
  
'Oh,' I said simply. I'd expected him to have more pokÃ©mon than that. I couldn't believe I'd won only using four of my six pokÃ©mon! James walked over and handed me a badge.  
  
'Well done,' he said. 'You sure know how to use rock pokÃ©mon's weaknesses to your advantage.'  
  
'Thanks,' I smiled. 'But I never could have done it without my venusaur!'  
  
'Saur,' smiled Raus.  
  
James nodded. 'Well while you're here in Gem Village, I recommend you visit the Gem Caverns. There's lots of rock pokÃ©mon in there, as well as other types. You might even get lucky and find some really rare ones. That's where I found Aerodactyl.'  
  
'Really?' I asked. 'Cool! We'd better go there then!'  
  
'Good luck,' said James.  
  
'Thanks,' I said, and left for the PokÃ©mon Centre. After healing my pokÃ©mon, I took Raus out of its pokÃ©ball. 'Hey Raus, I'm sorry I tried to make you retreat when you knew you could still win. I was just worried about you getting hurt, you know that right?'  
  
'Venusaur,' nodded Raus. I smiled.  
  
'Thanks for what you did back there,' I said. 'That solar beam must have taken up a lot of energy. I'm really proud of you.' I turned to my friends. 'Now let's get to those caves, and catch some pokÃ©mon!'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Twelve, Chapter Five  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Chazz the charizard, Seaworth the seel  
  
I decided to change my pokÃ©mon team around a bit since it wouldn't be very smart to carry around mainly grass and water pokÃ©mon. So I switched Evy for Chazz and Knotty for Bybee. After asking Nurse Joy for directions, we found our way to the Gem Caverns. Trainers were allowed to go exploring in there freely, but there were paths laid out to follow so no one got lost. However, there were no lights as they disturbed the pokÃ©mon who lived there. I sure felt relieved that I'd brought Chazz with me! I took it out of its pokÃ©ball and we followed the light on its tail.  
  
'I hope we can find digletts in here!' said Luke.  
  
'Why?' Sand-Cloud asked. 'You already have a dugtrio.'  
  
'You can't ever have too many digletts!' said Luke.  
  
'Um, OK...' I said. 'Anyway, I hope we can find some fossils!'  
  
'Yeah,' said Luke. 'That'd be better.. just.'  
  
I rolled my eyes and kept walking. Pretty soon, we stumbled across a wild geodude.  
  
'Wow, a geodude!' said Luke.  
  
'Don't you already have one?' I asked. Luke sighed.  
  
'Remember, it evolved and I traded it,' he said.  
  
'Oh yeah..' I said. I remembered that incident now. Luke had traded his graveler for Simone's psyduck.. a trade he regretted immediately, when Graveler evolved into Golem.  
  
'But catching another one would bring back too many bad memories,' said Luke. 'You catch it, Janet.'  
  
I laughed. 'OK then. Seaworth, I choose you!'  
  
'Geo! Geodude!' said Geodude, backing away from my seel.  
  
'Seaworth, use your aurora beam!' I said.  
  
'SEEL!' said Seaworth, attacking Geodude. The rock pokÃ©mon was sent flying. It fell to the ground, but then ran off before I could even take out a pokÃ©ball!  
  
'Aww, no fair,' I said.  
  
'Don't worry about it,' said Sand-Cloud. 'This is a cave, there's bound to be plenty more geodudes in here.'  
  
'Yeah, I guess so,' I said. 'Seaworth, return.'  
  
I recalled my seel and we kept moving. After only a minute or two, we felt the earth shake, and a loud cry was heard.  
  
'GOOOOOOLEM!!!'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Twelve, Chapter Six  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Tailz the vulpix, Chazz the charizard  
  
A huge golem rolled into our view. It stood up on its back legs and thumped the ground, causing it to shake again. It didn't look very happy.  
  
'Uh, guys..' said Sand-Cloud. 'Now would be a good time to RUN.'  
  
I nodded. We started running for our lives. Who knows what a wild golem could do to us! I didn't think even Raus could fight that thing off. Especially not in this cave, where it couldn't use solar beam.  
  
After a few minutes of running, I suddenly realised that we weren't even being chased. I came to a stop, and so did Sand-Cloud, Gelby, Tailz and Chazz. We all slumped down puffing, trying to get our breath back. Hang on a moment. Sand-Cloud, Gelby, Tailz and Chazz. Someone was missing.  
  
'Oh no!' I exclaimed. 'Where's Luke!?'  
  
Everyone looked around, but he was nowhere in sight.  
  
'Did he run on ahead?' Sand-Cloud asked.  
  
'No,' said Gelby, shaking her head. 'We would have seen him.'  
  
'Then that must mean..' I started. I didn't even have to finish. I grabbed my pokÃ©balls, got up and started heading back the way we came.  
  
'Wait, Janet!' Sand-Cloud called, running after me. 'That golem could destroy you!'  
  
'It could also destroy Luke,' I pointed out. Sand-Cloud sighed.  
  
'Alright, let's go,' she nodded. I smiled, then turned to Gelby and my two pokÃ©mon. Gelby and Tailz were both really tired out, they wouldn't be able to go much further. But I couldn't just leave them there.  
  
'Hey Chazz,' I said. 'Can you carry them for me?'  
  
Chazz paused, then nodded. It bent down and picked up Gelby. It placed her on its back, between its wings. Gelby thankfully put her arms around Chazz's neck to hold on. Then Chazz pulled Tailz into its arms.  
  
'Thanks a lot buddy,' I smiled. With Chazz carrying Tailz and Gelby, we all headed back the way we came. About ten minutes later, we made it back to the spot where Golem had attacked. And there was Luke. He didn't look too happy. It was understandable really, considering he was being surrounded by at least ten golems. Why did he always get himself into messes like this?  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Twelve, Chapter Seven  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Raus the venusaur, Chazz the charizard, Tailz the vulpix  
  
'Janet...' said Luke nervously, looking around at the giant rock pokÃ©mon that were surrounding him. 'By any chance do you think you could help me out?'  
  
I sighed and opened up the pokÃ©ball containing Raus. My big venusaur appeared.  
  
'Raus,' I said quietly, not wanting the golems to hear me. 'Can you try and razor leaf as many of those golems as possible?'  
  
'Saur,' nodded Raus. It gathered up all the leaves it could find from the flower on its back, and sent them flying into the group of golems.  
  
'Aaaahh!' I heard Luke cry. Oops.  
  
'Um..' I said. Maybe that hadn't been the best tactic. Not only had I managed to get Luke hurt, I'd gotten the golems angry. And they knew I was there now. And well, they didn't look very friendly.  
  
'Well done,' said Sand-Cloud.  
  
'Sorry..' it was all I could say. And then I couldn't say anything more, because the golems were curling themselves into balls and rolling towards us at light speed. Sand-Cloud and I turned to run as Raus tried to fight them off with another razor leaf attack. It was no use, there were too many of them and they were too strong.  
  
Just as I thought we were about to get crushed, I felt myself get pulled into the air from the back of my shirt. Freaked out, I looked down and saw the whole group of golems roll straight underneath me and out of sight. With a sigh of relief, I looked back and realised that Chazz had grabbed me my the shirt and flown into the air, lifting me out of the golems' reach. As my charizard landed again, I saw that it had also saved Sand-Cloud by pulling her into its arms and lifting her up too.  
  
Chazz put everyone down and sat on the ground, puffing. It must have taken a lot of effort to lift me, Sand-Cloud, Tailz and Gelby! I gave my charizard a grateful hug.  
  
'Thanks so much Chazz,' I said. 'If it wasn't for you those golems could have killed us!'  
  
'And if it wasn't for you your venusaur wouldn't have nearly killed me!'  
  
I suddenly remembered Luke, and rushed over to him. He was covered in cuts from the razor leaf attack Raus had used.  
  
'Oh Luke,' I sighed. 'I'm so sorry!'  
  
'It's OK,' he said. 'You were just trying to help.'  
  
I gave him an apologetic smile, then pulled him up. 'Are you OK?'  
  
'Yeah,' he said, but was probably lying. I hugged him.  
  
'We'd better get out of this cave,' I said.  
  
'No way, we've still got pokÃ©mon to catch!' said Luke. I laughed. Even after being accidentally attacked by Raus, he was still as determined as ever to catch pokÃ©mon! 'Are you OK Jigglypuff?'  
  
I'd completely forgotten about Luke's jigglypuff. He bent down and picked it up. Luckily, it didn't seem to have been hurt by Raus's attack.  
  
'Jiggly jiggly!' it said. It smiled and tried to hug Luke with its little arms. I smiled, then turned to the others.  
  
'Come on, let's keep looking for some pokÃ©mon!' I said. I held out a pokÃ©ball and returned Raus, then we started moving again.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Twelve, Chapter Eight  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Chazz the charizard  
  
We continued to search deeper into the Gem Caverns. We saw plenty of zubats but they always flew away whenever we came near. Luckily, we didn't find any more golems.  
  
'It's not fair,' complained Luke. 'I didn't even get to catch one of those golems!'  
  
'I thought they'd bring too many bad memories,' I smiled.  
  
'No, a geodude would,' said Luke. 'Because even if it evolved to a graveler, I wouldn't be able to evolve it again without trading it, and it'd just be like my old graveler. But if I caught a wild golem it'd be different.'  
  
'Oh OK,' I said. I paused. 'Hang on Luke, do you mean that you tried to catch that first golem we saw?'  
  
'Er...' said Luke innocently. 'Maybe..'  
  
'And we thought we were rescuing you from some crazy wild pokÃ©mon!' I said. 'We didn't realise it was your fault they were attacking you!'  
  
'That's not the point,' smiled Luke. 'Come on, aren't we meant to be catching pokÃ©mon?'  
  
I sighed and we kept looking around for more pokÃ©mon. As we got deeper into the caves it got so dark that even Chazz's tail flame hardly helped us to see. I wasn't sure we should be going that far into the caves.. what if we got lost?  
  
'Hey guys,' said Gelby. 'Do you really think we should go much further?'  
  
I loved it when people said exactly what I'd been thinking.  
  
'Of course,' said Luke. 'All the rare pokÃ©mon will be deeper into the caves were most trainers don't go.'  
  
'But it's getting late,' said Gelby. 'It's been a hard day, shouldn't we get some rest soon?'  
  
'Hey, you're the one that got carried by a charizard for most of the time,' said Luke. 'I endured a razor leaf attack, and I'm still eager to keep going!'  
  
'Oh be quiet Luke,' said Sand-Cloud. 'Gelby, the thing is, if we head back now, it's going to take forever to get out of here.. so we're going to have to spend the night in here.'  
  
Gelby sighed. 'Yeah, I guess you're right.'  
  
'We might as well set up camp then,' I said. 'We can keep going tomorrow after we've had a good rest.'  
  
'Yeah, good idea,' smiled Gelby.  
  
'Fine then, let all the good pokÃ©mon get taken,' said Luke.  
  
'I thought I told you to be quiet,' said Sand-Cloud.  
  
'Then don't blame me when all the aerodactyls get captured by trainers who thought training was more important than sleeping..' said Luke.  
  
'Luke?' I said. 'Just shut up.'  
  
Luke rolled his eyes.  
  
'Besides, we're not stopping you from going further,' said Sand-Cloud. 'You're not part of the team, remember? You can go on ahead without us.'  
  
'Aww, but I'll get scared without you Sand-Cloud,' said Luke sarcastically.  
  
'Will everyone just be quiet and get some sleep!' said Gelby. We all laughed and within another ten minutes, we were all lying down trying to go to sleep. It was hard trying to sleep in the middle of a dark carve, on a hard cold surface when we didn't even know what time it was.  
  
As I finally did feel myself drifting into sleep, I was sure I heard a strange scratching sound, and some kind of voices..  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Twelve, Chapter Nine  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Shovel the dugtrio, Chazz the charizard, Slash the sandshrew  
  
I woke up after a strange dream about kabutos and omanytes coming to life out of fossils and running around the cave. As I looked around, I saw that everyone else was awake.. well, everyone except Gelby, but that was expected.  
  
'Hey Janet,' said Luke.  
  
'Any idea what time it is?' I asked. Luke pressed a button on his watch and a small light came on.  
  
'It's seven thirty in the morning,' he said.  
  
'Oh, no wonder Gelby's still asleep,' I said. 'She doesn't get up in the AM hours.'  
  
Sand-Cloud laughed.  
  
'Come on, can't we start looking for some pokÃ©mon now?' Luke asked. I sighed and shook Gelby.  
  
'Hey Gelby, wake up,' I said. Slowly, she opened her eyes and sat up.  
  
'What time is it?' she yawned.  
  
'Um.. nine thirty,' said Luke. I laughed.  
  
'I know you're lying, but I'm awake now so I might as well get up,' said Gelby. After another few minutes, we all started travelling deeper into the Gem Caverns. Strangely, we didn't see any pokÃ©mon for hours!  
  
We came to a large chamber which appeared to be a dead-end. The whole place was covered in rocks with strange designs carved into them. There were two dominant designs that appeared all over the chamber: one was a spiral shape, and the other was a circle with two small spots at one end.  
  
'What is this place?' I asked, bewildered. Everyone walked around the chamber, studying the strange carvings. I'd seen them somewhere before, but where?  
  
'These shapes look familiar,' said Luke.  
  
'I know,' I said. I ran my hand over one of the spiral-shaped patterns, and suddenly I realised. 'Omanyte!'  
  
'What?' Sand-Cloud asked.  
  
'It's omanyte!' I said, pointing to the spiral. 'Look at it, this spiral represents the spiral on the side of an omanyte.'  
  
'And the other shape is Kabuto!' said Luke. 'The circle is its shell, and the two spots are its false eyes.'  
  
'You're right,' I said, looking at the shape.  
  
'Do you think this means, that there are omanytes and kabutos in here?' Sand-Cloud asked.  
  
'I don't know,' I said. 'Remember, they are classed as extinct pokÃ©mon. These carvings could have been made by some kind of ancient race, back when omanytes and kabutos were common.'  
  
'Maybe,' said Sand-Cloud. 'But you know what that means..'  
  
'What?' I asked.  
  
'There must be fossils in here!' said Sand-Cloud. 'If omanytes and kabutos used to live here, their fossils must be around here somewhere.'  
  
'I hope so,' I said. 'Hey, I know. Let's get our pokÃ©mon to help look for them!'  
  
'Good idea!' said Luke. He took out a pokÃ©ball. 'Shovel, I choose you!'  
  
'I don't have any pokÃ©mon that can dig,' I said, thinking through the pokÃ©mon I had with me. 'But I can get Chazz to help everyone see.'  
  
'Char,' nodded Chazz.  
  
'Hang on,' said Sand-Cloud. 'I have a pokÃ©mon that can dig!'  
  
'Oh yeah!' I said. I'd almost forgotten about Sand-Cloud's pokÃ©mon! She took out her single pokÃ©ball.  
  
'Slash, come out!' she said. Her sandshrew appeared.  
  
'Now that we've got two ground pokÃ©mon to help dig, let's find those fossils!' I said.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Twelve, Chapter Ten  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Shovel the dugtrio, Slash the sandshrew  
  
Shovel and Slash started to dig around, looking for any fossils they could find.  
  
'Are you sure it's a good idea to just have them dig anywhere?' Gelby asked. 'We don't know where the fossils are.'  
  
'Shrew!'  
  
'Oh, don't we?' Sand-Cloud smiled. I gasped as I saw that a strange- looking rock was coming into view where Slash was digging.  
  
'Hey Shovel, hurry it up!' said Luke. 'Try and find one before Slash does!'  
  
I laughed, and turned back to watch Slash. After another few minutes of digging, it pulled out the strange rock.  
  
'Sandshrew!' it said triumphantly.  
  
'Wow,' I said. 'Do you think that's a fossil?'  
  
'It could be,' said Sand-Cloud. 'Here Slash, show it to me.'  
  
Slash handed the rock to Sand-Cloud. I walked over and looked at it with her. We brushed the dirt off together and pretty soon we could see a shape forming. Just then, we heard Luke call out.  
  
'Yeah!' he said. 'Shovel, you're the coolest!'  
  
I turned and saw that Shovel too had uncovered something. It looked a bit different to the thing Slash had found, but still looked like a fossil. Luke and got to work cleaning up the rock, and I turned back to the one Slash had found.  
  
'I think it's a kabuto!' I said.  
  
'I think so too,' said Sand-Cloud.  
  
'Aww, I wish it was an omanyte,' I said. Sand-Cloud laughed.  
  
'Don't complain, it's better than nothing,' she said. 'And that's only if we can find one of those scientists who can revive the fossils, anyway!'  
  
'Oh yeah,' I said. I turned to Luke and saw that his fossil had a clear spiral shape on it. 'Looks like an omanyte.'  
  
Luke nodded. 'I wanted a kabuto, but I'm satisfied.'  
  
I laughed. 'Well come on, we'd better find a way out of this cave now!'  
  
'Don't you want to look for more fossils?' Gelby asked.  
  
'No,' I said. 'It's not fair on the other trainers and besides, we could be here for hours.'  
  
'Fair enough,' said Gelby.  
  
'Come on, let's get going,' I said. We all got up and started to head out of the cave.  
  
Hours later, we trudged into the PokÃ©mon Centre back at Gem Village. We were so tired after travelling through those caves all day! I happily gave my pokÃ©balls to Nurse Joy and sat down for a rest.  
  
'I hope we can find someone who can revive the fossils,' said Luke.  
  
'So do I,' I said. 'Seeing an ancient pokÃ©mon brought to life would be so cool!'  
  
'I know!' said Luke. 'I hope they're not going to be hard to train, though.'  
  
'You and Sand-Cloud will handle it,' I said.  
  
'What!?' Sand-Cloud exclaimed. I looked at her. 'You don't think I'm going to train that thing, do you?'  
  
'Er, well it was Slash who found it..' I said. 'Who else is going to train it?'  
  
'You are,' said Sand-Cloud.  
  
'I am?' I asked.  
  
'Yes!' Sand-Cloud laughed. 'I can barely train one pokÃ©mon Janet, I don't need another one, and especially an extinct one!' I smiled. 'Besides, the reason we went into those caves was to find pokÃ©mon for you! So you can have the fossil, I don't care.'  
  
'Aww, thanks Sand-Cloud,' I smiled. I was even more excited about this fossil now!  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Twelve, Chapter Eleven  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson  
  
When Nurse Joy returned our pokÃ©mon, we asked her who we could talk to about the fossils we'd discovered. She told us that the best person to talk to was the gym leader of Gem Village. It was getting late, so we stayed at the centre for the night, and headed back to the gym to see James the next day. Luckily for us, he wasn't in the middle of a battle or training.  
  
'Hi,' he said when he saw us. 'Didn't you lot come here the other day?'  
  
'Yeah,' I nodded. 'We came to talk to you about some fossils we found.'  
  
'Oh, so you visited the Gem Caverns?' James asked. 'And found some fossils? Well done!'  
  
'Thanks,' I said. 'So, um, can you tell us what they are?'  
  
'Hopefully,' said James. 'Let's have a look at them.'  
  
Luke and I each took out our fossils and showed them to James.  
  
'Yep, these are real fossils alright,' he said. He looked at my fossil. 'This one's a dome fossil.. and this one's a helix fossil.'  
  
'Oh, that really helped,' said Luke.  
  
'OK,' laughed James. 'For those of you who haven't studied rock pokÃ©mon, a dome fossil is a kabuto fossil, and a helix fossil is an omanyte fossil.'  
  
'We thought that's what they were,' I smiled.  
  
'See, you didn't even need my help!' said James.  
  
'Well, we did,' I said. 'Because that's not the main reason we came here. We were wondering, where do you go to get these fossils revived?'  
  
'Well it's tricky,' said James. 'Not many pokÃ©mon scientists have the technology to revive pokÃ©mon fossils, so you have to go to someone who specialises in ancient pokÃ©mon. And unfortunately, there aren't any of them around here anymore. The man who revived my aerodactyl moved to another continent..'  
  
'Another continent!?' I exclaimed.  
  
'Yeah,' said James. 'Well, I can give you his details in case you ever happen to go there.'  
  
I laughed. 'Might as well.'  
  
James gave as the scientist's name and address. I was really disappointed that we wouldn't be able to revive our ancient pokÃ©mon.. at least not for a long time! Still, I guess I had more important things to think about, like finding the next gym and earning my next badge!  
  
We thanked James for his help and left the gym. We weren't really sure where we were headed, but we left the village and kept walking. After we'd been travelling for a few hours, Luke suddenly turned to me.  
  
'I just thought of something!' he said.  
  
'What?' I asked.  
  
'If you wanted an omanyte, and I wanted a kabuto..' he said. 'And you got a dome fossil and I got a helix fossil...'  
  
'You want to trade fossils?' I smiled.  
  
'Yeah,' said Luke.  
  
'Sounds good to me,' I said. I took out my fossil, and swapped it with Luke's. I now had a helix fossil, which would some day be an omanyte!  
  
'Cool,' said Luke. 'It's like trading pokÃ©mon, but not.'  
  
'Um, yeah Luke..' I said. 'Let's just keep going now.'  
  
'Good idea,' said Sand-Cloud. We started moving again, still not sure where we would end up.  
  
~Janet~  
  
END OF PART TWELVE 


	15. Part Thirteen

Part Thirteen, Chapter One  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson  
  
We'd had a hard few weeks of travelling, and were grateful when we stopped at a place called Blunt Town. We went straight to the PokÃ©mon Centre to heal our pokÃ©mon and have a rest ourselves.  
  
Not long after we'd been resting in the PokÃ©mon Centre, we saw a boy walk in with two clefairies at his feet. He went straight to Nurse Joy.  
  
'Any news on the moon stones?' he asked.  
  
'No, sorry Jeremy,' said Nurse Joy. 'We haven't had any trainers in with moon stones for weeks!'  
  
The boy nodded. 'Thanks anyway.'  
  
'Moon stones?' Luke asked me. I shrugged.  
  
'You know, those evolution stones,' I said.  
  
'I know what moon stones are,' said Luke, rolling his eyes. 'I was just wondering what he was asking about them for.'  
  
'Who cares?' Sand-Cloud asked. 'It's none of our business.'  
  
Just then, the boy walked towards us. Maybe it was our business, then.  
  
'You're pokÃ©mon trainers, I guess?' he asked. We nodded. 'My name's Jeremy, I'm a clefairy trainer.'  
  
Luke raised his eyebrows. 'You only train clefairies?'  
  
Jeremy nodded with a smile. 'Clefairies are the best pokÃ©mon in the whole world!'  
  
'No way,' said Luke. He hugged his jigglypuff. 'Jigglypuffs are way better!'  
  
'Clefairies and jigglypuffs are similar in many ways,' said Jeremy. 'They learn similar moves, and they both evolve with moon stones.'  
  
'What's that you were asking about moon stones, anyway?' Luke asked.  
  
'I'm doing a research study on moon stones,' said Jeremy. 'I'm trying to work out how they make pokÃ©mon evolve, and why only some pokÃ©mon can evolve using them.'  
  
'They're just like any other evolution stone,' said Sand-Cloud.  
  
'Not necessarily,' said Jeremy. 'I think there's more to it than that. I mean, think about it. The other evolution stones are all type-specific. Fire stones only evolve fire pokÃ©mon, leaf stones only evolve grass pokÃ©mon, and so on. But moon stones aren't like that. Moon stones only evolve nidorinas, nidorinos, clefairies and jigglypuffs. I'm trying to work out what's so special about those pokÃ©mon that makes the moon stone have the power to evolve them.'  
  
'Oh,' said Luke. 'But what about pokÃ©mon that evolve by other stones? I mean, what makes weepinbells so special that leaf stones evolve them?'  
  
Jeremy smiled. 'But as I said, leaf stones only evolve grass pokÃ©mon. Weepinbell is a grass-type. It's the grass energy in the leaf stone that triggers its evolution. The pokÃ©mon that evolve by moon stones aren't a particular type; some are normal type, and some are poison type.'  
  
'Hmm,' said Luke. 'Well, I'm stumped.'  
  
Jeremy laughed. 'Even after months of research I still can't figure it out! Plus I used my last moon stone yesterday.. I don't have anything to work with anymore.'  
  
'Hey, don't you have a moon stone, Janet?' Sand-Cloud asked. Yes, I did, but I was hoping she wouldn't say that. I didn't want Jeremy to do experiments on my moon stone or anything, did I!  
  
'Um.. yeah I do,' I said.  
  
'Hey, that's right!' said Luke. He pulled open his backpack and started searching through it. 'I remember now, Officer Jenny gave them to us when we stopped Ace and Kat from stealing all the stones in that cave.. where was it.. Citrus City or something like that.'  
  
'Yeah,' I nodded. Luke finally pulled the moon stone out of his backpack.  
  
'Here it is!' he said.  
  
'Wow!' said Jeremy. 'I can't believe I just ran into two people with moon stones! Hey, if you don't mind, would you be able to help me in my research?'  
  
'Sure!' said Luke happily. Why did we always get dragged into these things?  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Thirteen, Chapter Two  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Jeremy the clefairy trainer  
  
Jeremy took us to his house, where he had a miniature research centre set up. He took Luke's moon stone (luckily I hadn't shown him mine yet) and put it on a table, attaching a few strange cords to it. Then he pressed a few switches on a nearby computer, and all sorts of strange numbers and diagrams appeared on the monitor. He watched them intently, as if knowing exactly what was going on. I was quite surprised. This guy was quite a bit younger than us, but he certainly seemed a lot smarter!  
  
'Nothing new,' sighed Jeremy. 'It's the same results I get from every moon stone.. it's all just one big mystery.'  
  
'What exactly does that thing do?' Luke asked, pointing to the computer.  
  
'It measures the levels of lunar radiation in the moon stone,' said Jeremy. 'That's the stuff that mutates with the genes of the pokÃ©mon and makes them evolve. But it's still not telling me anything new.. I guess that's the bad thing about being a clefairy trainer. I've only seem clefairies use moon stones, I haven't seen any other pokÃ©mon use them..'  
  
'Hey Luke, why don't you evolve your jigglypuff?' Sand-Cloud asked. Luke stared at her in shock.  
  
'NO WAY!' he yelled. Everyone laughed, including Jigglypuff.  
  
'That's another problem,' smiled Jeremy. 'Lots of trainers don't like evolving their clefairies or jigglypuffs because they think they're too cute.'  
  
'Are you saying nidorinas aren't cute?' Luke asked with a smile. Then he slapped himself on the forehead. Everyone gave him a strange look. 'Hey, I just remembered! I have a nidorina! And I think it's about time I evolved it!'  
  
'Really?' Jeremy asked, his eyes lighting up.  
  
'Yeah,' nodded Luke. 'Hey, do you have a pokÃ©mon-transferring-type- thing?'  
  
'Um,' said Jeremy. 'You mean a computer with access to Bill's PC?'  
  
'Yeah,' smiled Luke. 'That.'  
  
'Sure I do,' said Jeremy. 'Just over here.'  
  
He led us over to another computer. Pressing a few keys, a screen came up with "Bill's PC" at the top. Jeremy stepped out of the way so Luke could access his pokÃ©mon, but he stayed looking over his shoulder in case Luke broke anything. Of course.  
  
'Alright, I'll switch Butterfree for Nidorina,' said Luke to himself.  
  
'Since when do you have a butterfree?' I asked.  
  
'Since about six months ago,' smiled Luke.  
  
'Oh,' I said. 'Right.'  
  
'OK, I've got it,' said Luke, turning back to us. 'Wow this is so cool, I'm finally going to evolve Nidorina!'  
  
'Hold on!' said Jeremy. He opened a cupboard and started searching through it, finally producing a video camera. He turned to the rest of us. 'You don't mind if I film it, right?'  
  
'I don't see why not,' said Luke. He opened up the pokÃ©ball. 'Come on out, Nidorina!'  
  
His spiky little blue pokÃ©mon appeared, and looked up at him. 'Nido?'  
  
'Hey Nidorina,' said Luke. 'You know how you're really strong and everything now.. well do you think it's time you evolved?'  
  
Nidorina's eyes lit up, as if it had been dreaming of this moment all its life. It nodded its head rapidly. 'Nido! Nido!'  
  
'I think that's a yes,' said Sand-Cloud observantly.  
  
'Yeah, I would say so,' said Luke with a smile. 'OK, here goes.'  
  
He grabbed his moon stone and bent down. Pressing the stone to Nidorina, he then stepped back and watched as his pokÃ©mon grew into a large creature with hard armour for skin, sharp spines and at the same time, a kind face. The pokÃ©mon smiled.  
  
'Nidoqueeeeen!'  
  
'Yeah, I got Nidoqueen!' said Luke, pumping his fist into the air.  
  
'You didn't "get" Nidoqueen, you just evolved Nidorina,' said Sand-Cloud.  
  
'Same thing,' shrugged Luke.  
  
'Wow, that was so cool!' said Jeremy. 'I can't wait to show this to my sister! That'll show her that moon stones are just as amazing when evolving poison-types as normal-types!'  
  
'Your sister?' Luke asked.  
  
'Yeah,' nodded Jeremy. 'Oh, I didn't tell you! My sister is the gym leader here in Blunt Town!'  
  
'What!?' I exclaimed. 'There's a gym here!?'  
  
Jeremy laughed. 'Yeah. I'm surprised you haven't heard of it, it's a pretty popular gym. Normal-type pokÃ©mon.'  
  
'Normal-types..' I said. 'Hmm, that should be interesting. They don't have very many strengths and weaknesses.'  
  
'Exactly,' said Jeremy. 'And they can learn moves of so many different types. That's what makes them so versatile, and the best type of pokÃ©mon there is! Of course, none of them are as good as clefairies..'  
  
I laughed.  
  
'Well I suppose you want to challenge her for a badge,' said Jeremy. Luke and I both nodded. 'Well follow me, I'll show you the way!'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Thirteen, Chapter Three  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Jeremy the clefairy trainer, Pikapi the raichu, Chazz the charizard  
  
Jeremy led us to the Blunt Town gym. It was the biggest gym I'd seen yet! I was quite amazed that there wasn't more publicity for it at the PokÃ©mon Centre. As we followed Jeremy inside, just about every trainer we passed greeted him. He must have been pretty well known around here!  
  
'Hey sis!' said Jeremy as we entered the stadium. A tall girl looked over from where she was sitting with a meowth on her lap, on the other side of the room. 'I've brought some trainers to challenge you...'  
  
'Oh,' said the girl, standing up with the meowth in her arms. 'Sure, I'd love a battle!' She turned to look at us. 'Are all of you going to battle?'  
  
'No, just me and Janet,' said Luke.  
  
'Oh, OK then,' nodded the girl. 'My name is Penny by the way. I'm the holder of the normal badge.'  
  
'That sounds kind of boring,' commented Sand-Cloud. Penny rolled her eyes.  
  
'Anyway, if you both want to challenge me I'm going to have to have two separate pokÃ©mon teams, so hold on while I get organised.'  
  
We nodded and she walked over to a table where several pokÃ©balls were placed. She rearranged them a few times, and finally took six and walked back to us.  
  
'OK, I'm ready,' she said. 'Who wants to go first?'  
  
'You can Janet,' said Luke.  
  
'Yeah, might as well get it over with,' I said.  
  
'Let's get started then,' said Penny. I nodded and everyone took their places. I suddenly realised I hadn't actually thought out any strategies at all. We'd come straight from Jeremy's place, and I hadn't had time to regroup my team. Oh well, I'd have to cope with what I had. Besides, my pokÃ©mon were all at high levels now, I'd surely have a good chance of winning..?  
  
'Persian!' said Penny. 'You're first!'  
  
She tossed a pokÃ©ball and the evolved form of her meowth appeared. The little cat pokÃ©mon at her feet cheered. I smiled.  
  
'In that case I choose.. Pikapi!' I said.  
  
'Hmm,' said Penny. 'Not what I expected, but Persian can handle it. Persian, slash!'  
  
'Pikapi, thunderwave!' I said.  
  
'Raichu!' said Pikapi. Its electrical currents managed to paralyse Persian. I smiled. We were off to a good start.  
  
'Persian, don't let it slow you down,' said Penny. 'Agility!'  
  
'Pikapi, you're sill the fastest!' I said. 'Thunder attack now!'  
  
'Rai.. rai.. CHUUUU!' roared Pikapi, sending a huge blast of electricity at Persian. It hit, and caused a lot of damage.  
  
'That's a strong raichu..' said Penny. 'But normal-types can overcome anything! Persian, bite!'  
  
'Perrr!' said Persian, leaping at Pikapi and sinking its teeth into my pokÃ©mon.  
  
'Rai!' cried Pikapi, struggling to break free of the larger pokÃ©mon's fangs.  
  
'Pikapi, thundershock!' I said. Persian stumbled back with the strength of the attack.  
  
'Persian, slash!' said Penny. Persian tried its best to lash out at Pikapi with its claws, but it was caught by its paralysis, and couldn't move.  
  
'Finish it off with Swift!' I said. Pikapi sent a shower of stars at Persian, knocking it out.  
  
'Persian return,' said Penny. 'You may be off to a good start but that won't last! Go Kangaskhan!'  
  
Another pokÃ©ball was thrown, revealing a large, tough-looking pokÃ©mon.  
  
'Pikapi, a Thunder attack should do it!' I said. Pikapi blasted lightning at Kangaskhan, but its attack missed! I bit my lip as Penny ordered her pokÃ©mon to attack.  
  
'Earthquake!' she said.  
  
'Kangas!' said Kangaskhan. It leapt into the air and slammed down on the ground, causing it to shake and knock Pikapi over. My electric pokÃ©mon couldn't handle such a powerful ground-type attack.  
  
'Pikapi return,' I called. 'Which pokÃ©mon should be able to beat Earthquake.. hmm... hey I know, go Chazz!'  
  
'Oooh, tricky,' said Penny, rolling her eyes. 'Kangaskhan has other moves as well as Earthquake. Like this one.. Kangaskhan, thunderpunch!'  
  
Oh oh.  
  
'Charrr!' cried Chazz as Kangaskhan slammed an electricity-covered fist into it.  
  
'Types aren't everything Chazz,' I said. 'Use flamethrower, that should stop it!'  
  
Chazz nodded, bent its head down and let out a huge blast of fire. The kangaskhan was burnt, but wasn't giving up yet.  
  
'Kangaskhan, another thunderpunch!' said Penny. This time Chazz was hurt really badly, and I had no choice but to recall it. That kangaskhan was stronger than I had expected..  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
Part Thirteen, Chapter Four  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Jeremy the clefairy trainer, Penny the pokÃ©mon leader of normal, Slothie the snorlax  
  
'Go, Slothie!' I said. It was the only choice I had; all my other pokÃ©mon would have been hurt badly against either Earthquake or Thunderpunch. Besides, Slothie was one of my strongest pokÃ©mon!  
  
'Oooh, a snorlax!' said Penny excitedly. 'Good choice! I hate to hurt such a lovely pokÃ©mon, but Kangaskhan, use dizzy punch!'  
  
Slothie stumbled back from the impact of the punch, but got back up, ready to fight.  
  
'Slothie, body slam!' I said.  
  
'Snooooooor!' said Slothie, leaping into the air and crashing down on Kangaskhan. It stood back up to reveal a very squashed pokÃ©mon.  
  
'Kangaskhan, get back up!' said Penny encouragingly. Her pokÃ©mon shook itself and forced itself up, getting back into the battle. 'Kangaskhan, Earthquake!'  
  
'KangasKHAN!' roared her pokÃ©mon. Slothie fell over with the power of the attack. But it was strong, and it wasn't giving up yet!  
  
'Slothie, headbutt!' I said. Slothie rammed its huge head into Kangaskhan and knocked it back. It fell to the ground. It seemed the tough pokÃ©mon had finally had enough.  
  
'Kangaskhan return!' called Penny. 'Your turn, Jigglypuff!'  
  
'Yay, a jigglypuff!' cheered Luke. I rolled my eyes.  
  
'Slothie, you can beat it,' I said. 'Body slam now!'  
  
'Snooor!' Slothie attacked Jigglypuff. Its sheer size caused a lot of damage to the little pokÃ©mon.  
  
'Jigglypuff, let's throw that pokÃ©mon's favourite hobby back at it!' said Penny with a smile. 'Sing!'  
  
Jigglypuff smiled and opened its mouth to sing; 'Jigg a lee puff... jiggly pufff...'  
  
'S.. snor.. lax...' yawned Slothie.  
  
'Hang in there Slothie!' I said. 'Don't fall asleep!'  
  
'Jigglypuff.... puff.. jigg-leee puff...'  
  
Luke's jigglypuff, watching from the sidelines, was getting excited at the sound of another jigglypuff singing. Its eyes lit up and it leapt out of Luke's arms.  
  
'Jiggly!' it said.  
  
'Jigglypuff, what are you doing?' Luke asked. 'Come back here!'  
  
'Jigglypuff,' smiled Jigglypuff. And then it started to sing! 'Jiggly puff.. pu-uffff, jiggleee..'  
  
I tried not to laugh as Penny's jigglypuff tuned in to the sound of Luke's jigglypuff singing, and starting getting sleepy itself. Before I knew what was happening, both Slothie and Penny's jigglypuff were asleep! And Penny didn't look too happy about it.  
  
'That probably shouldn't be allowed,' said Penny. 'But since that jigglypuff wasn't in the battlefield, I can't really disqualify you.'  
  
I smiled. Things were really going my way now! I called my sleeping snorlax back and thought through which pokÃ©mon to send out next.  
  
'Go Evy!' I said.  
  
'Go Porygon!' said Penny, tossing another pokÃ©ball. A strange-looking, but really cute, pokÃ©mon with jagged edges appeared.  
  
'Poreeegon!' it said.  
  
'Evy, you can do it!' I said. 'Aurora beam!'  
  
'Vapooooreon!'  
  
'Porygon, Conversion!' said Penny.  
  
'Well, that didn't seem to do much,' I shrugged. 'Evy, another aurora beam!'  
  
Evy fired another beam at Porygon, but suddenly, it didn't seem to do much damage at all!  
  
'Poreon!' gasped Evy.  
  
'What's going on?' I asked.  
  
'Every normal-type trainer should know about Porygon's exceptional attack Conversion, which allows it to temporarily change its type to the type of the opponent!'  
  
'That's weird..' I said. 'If you're really a normal-type trainer, you shouldn't use that move!'  
  
Penny rolled her eyes. 'The beauty of normal-types is that they all have amazing powers like Conversion, which make them stand out from all other types. Anyway, enough chit-chat! Porygon, psybeam!'  
  
'Pory!' said Porygon, blasting Evy with its psychic powers.  
  
'Evy, try.. um.. bite!' I said. Evy sunk its teeth into Porygon. This did a lot more damage than Aurora Beam, but still not enough to defeat it.  
  
'Porygon, psybeam!' said Penny.  
  
'Evy, bite!' I said. My vaporeon managed to get a critical hit, dealing a lot of damage to the porygon. The porygon was weakening.. but so was Evy.  
  
'Porygon, one last psybeam!' said Penny. And she was right.. Porygon fired another psybeam and knocked Evy down easily. I sighed and called it back. Things weren't going so well after all..  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Thirteen, Chapter Five  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Jeremy the clefairy trainer Penny the pokÃ©mon leader of normal, Raus the venusaur, Tailz the vulpix  
  
'Go, Raus!' I said, throwing another pokÃ©ball. Raus would be able to defeat Porygon now; if it was a water type, Raus's razor leaf would knock it down easily! 'Raus, razor leaf!'  
  
'Porygon, Conversion!' said Penny. But it was too late, and the grass attack cut through Porygon's defense, knocking it out. 'Porygon, return. Well, if type conversion isn't enough, see how you handle this! Go, Ditto!'  
  
This could be tricky. If Ditto transformed into a venusaur, Raus's attacks wouldn't do very much damage..  
  
'Janet!' called Sand-Cloud. 'Remember that when Ditto transforms, it can't clone stats! Raus should still be stronger!'  
  
I nodded. 'Thanks Sand-Cloud.'  
  
'We'll see about that,' said Penny. 'Ditto, transform!'  
  
Her pokÃ©mon started changing and soon was a perfect copy of my venusaur.  
  
'Raus, tackle attack!' I said. Raus charged and slammed into the clone. My venusaur was really strong, so it managed to do quite a lot of damage.  
  
'Ditto, leech seed!' said Penny. Her fake venusaur planted spores on Raus, which grew into a plant and started sucking his energy. This looked bad.  
  
'Raus, tackle!' I said. Raus slammed into Ditto and caused a fair amount of damage, but its energy was then sucked through the leech seed.  
  
'Ditto, tackle!' said Penny. Her fake venusaur charged at Raus and knocked it down.  
  
'If I call Raus back, I can send out Tailz..' I said to myself. 'And it should be able to defeat Ditto while it's in venusaur form.. Raus, return!'  
  
'Venusaur!' roared Raus angrily, shaking its head. I sighed. When was Raus going to get over its habit of refusing to retreat?  
  
'Raus, listen to me,' I said. 'You have to know when it's time to quit, or you'll never win! There's no point in fighting a battle you can't win, you'll just get hurt. Now return!'  
  
'Venusaur,' said Raus defiantly. It stuck its head in the air and looked away from me. I frowned.  
  
'Raus,' I said firmly. 'I mean it. Get back inside your pokÃ©ball. There will be other battles you can win. But now I'm calling you back because I can tell you're not going to win this. I'm sorry Raus, but you have to face the facts sometimes. You can't win every battle. And if you can't accept that, then you're not a good battler at all.'  
  
'Saur,' said Raus. It looked down at the ground. I sighed.  
  
'Please Raus,' I said. 'We can make up for it in another battle. But for now.. return.'  
  
I held out my pokÃ©ball and to my surprise, Raus didn't resist. With another sigh, I turned to Tailz and nodded. My vulpix ran out into the battlefield.  
  
Stay focussed, Janet! I told myself. You can worry about Raus later.. now you have a battle, and a badge, to win!  
  
'Tailz!' I said. 'Flamethrower!'  
  
'VuuuulPIX!' roared Tailz, blasting Ditto with fire. The flames singed the fake venusaur's leaves, injuring it. Without a leech seed to suck back its strength, the ditto was helpless against my vulpix!  
  
'Ditto return!' called Penny. 'OK, looks like we're both down to our last pokÃ©mon. It's time for.. Fearow!'  
  
'Fearow!?' I exclaimed. 'But that's a flying-type!'  
  
Penny smiled, shaking a finger at me. 'There is no such thing as a monic flying type. Every flying-type pokÃ©mon has a second type. With Fearow, it's normal. That's what makes it so great!'  
  
'Feeeeeearow!' squawked her pokÃ©mon in agreement.  
  
'Hmmm..' I said. I hadn't thought about Penny having a flying-type. It's not that I didn't know about flying-type pokÃ©mon always having a second type, it had just.. slipped my mind.  
  
'OK Fearow, drill peck!' said Penny.  
  
'Tailz!' I said, knocking myself back to my senses. 'Flamethrower!'  
  
Tailz's attack did a lot of damage. I was actually quite surprised at how well my vulpix had battled so far. It must have been getting stronger..  
  
'Fearow, fury attack!'  
  
Tailz took the damage well, standing up and forcing itself to keep battling.  
  
'Tailz, you can do it!' I said. 'Quick attack!'  
  
'VulPIX!' said Tailz, leaping at Fearow. It knocked the big bird pokÃ©mon to the ground.  
  
'Fearow, drill peck!' said Penny. The fearow thrashed its head around but couldn't seem to break free of Tailz's grasp. I smiled.  
  
'Tailz, flamethrower now!' I said. Tailz nodded and opened its mouth. It let out a burst of flames, incinerating Fearow.  
  
'Feeeeeeearow!' the pokÃ©mon screeched.  
  
'Fearow, don't give up!' said Penny. 'Leer!'  
  
Fearow sneered at Tailz, effectively lowering my pokÃ©mon's defense. But, it seemed that Tailz's previous attack had burnt Fearow, and it was losing damage each time it tried to fight back.  
  
'Fearow, over here!' called Penny. Fearow turned and flew over to its master. What was Penny doing? I watched as she pulled a small bottle out of her pocket. 'Drink this Fearow, it's a burn heal.'  
  
None of my previous gym battles had involved using items before. I suddenly realised that I never even used items in battle. Maybe I'd have to consider that later..  
  
But for now, I had more important things to do. The time that had been spent healing Fearow had cost Penny a turn, and Tailz was more ready than ever to attack.  
  
'Tailz, flamethrower!'  
  
Tailz's attack didn't manage to burn Fearow this time, but it did manage to deal a lot of damage. The pokÃ©mon must have been just hanging on to its hit points!  
  
'Fearow, drill pe--'  
  
'Tailz, quick attack!' I cut in. Tailz leapt in and slammed into Fearow. That was all it took; the pokÃ©mon was down. I sighed with relief. The long battle was over. And I'd won my twelfth badge!  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Thirteen, Chapter Six  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Jeremy the clefairy trainer, Penny the pokÃ©mon leader of normal, Tailz the vulpix, Shovel the dugtrio  
  
'Congratulations, Janet!' said Penny as she handed me my badge. 'That was a great battle, you've deserved this!'  
  
'Thanks,' I smiled. 'You fought really well, too!'  
  
'V.. vul!'  
  
I looked down at Tailz, and broke into a smile. This was it! Tailz had finally matured enough, both through battling and through other experiences, and its sixth and final tail was finally sprouting!  
  
'Wow Tailz!' I smiled, picking up my vulpix and hugging it. 'Well done! I'm so proud of you!'  
  
'Vulpix vul!' yipped Tailz happily.  
  
Penny laughed. 'You know, I didn't even notice that it only had five tails! That's even more impressive than I thought! A Vulpix who doesn't have all of its tails is comparatively weak, and to defeat a high level fearow is very impressive!'  
  
'Pix..' Tailz blushed, and I laughed.  
  
'And now Tailz can win even more tough battles!' I smiled, and hugged it again.  
  
'OK, OK, can we get over the "wow-a-Vulpix-with-six-tails-how-amazing-you- don't-see-that-every-day" thing,' said Luke. 'I believe I'm meant to be having a battle..'  
  
Penny rolled her eyes. 'Alright. Hold on a moment.'  
  
It felt a bit strange to be watching from the sidelines for once! But I hadn't seen Luke battle in a long time, and I'd never seen him in a gym battle, so I was curious to see how he was going to do. I think I almost wanted him to lose. But I'm just like that. I smiled.  
  
'Let's get started!' said Penny. 'I choose you, Raticate!'  
  
'Pfft, a raticate,' muttered Luke. 'Go Shovel!'  
  
'Trio trio!' said his pokÃ©mon as it appeared from its pokÃ©ball. It looked quite a bit tougher since the last time I saw it.. Luke must have been training it a lot.  
  
'Raticate, super fang!' smiled Penny. Her pokÃ©mon charged at Luke's dugtrio and sunk in its huge fangs.  
  
'Trio!' Shovel cried out.  
  
'Woah!' Luke exclaimed, watching as his pokÃ©mon's energy was drained rapidly. 'This isn't good. Um, Shovel, Earthquake!'  
  
His pokÃ©mon attacked, and managed to do a lot of damage to the raticate.  
  
'Super fang again, Raticate!' said Penny. The attack didn't do as much damage as it had the first time, but still managed to drain a lot of Shovel's energy.  
  
'Shovel, slash!'  
  
'Raticate, hyper fang!'  
  
Luke's dugtrio fainted. Luke stared, dumbfounded, then recalled his pokÃ©mon. This raticate was strong!  
  
'Alright then, go Nidoqueen!' he said. He threw his next pokÃ©ball, and the pokÃ©mon he had evolved earlier that day appeared. I couldn't help wondering if it was a good idea for Nidoqueen to be battling in a gym match so early. It hadn't done any battling since it had evolved.. and wouldn't it need some time to get used to its new shape? I shrugged. This wasn't my battle. And maybe Nidoqueen would surprise me.  
  
'Nidoqueen, fury swipes!' said Luke.  
  
'Queen!' said his pokÃ©mon, lunging at the raticate and slashing it with its claws. It managed to get a full five hits in, the end result being a lot of damage to the opponent.  
  
'Raticate, super fang!' said Penny. To my - and Raticate's! - surprise, the attack missed completely. Nidoqueen leapt back at it with a poison sting, knocking it out.  
  
'Phew,' breathed Luke.  
  
'Don't get too confident yet,' said Penny. 'Go Snorlax!'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Thirteen, Chapter Seven  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Jeremy the clefairy trainer, Penny the pokÃ©mon leader of normal  
  
'Go Snorlax!'  
  
I blinked as Penny's snorlax emerged from its pokÃ©ball. It was a lot bigger than my snorlax, and coloured jet black and cream, as opposed to Slothie's greenish shades.  
  
'Nidoqueen, you can do it!' said Luke. 'Double kick!'  
  
Despite the fighting-type move being super-effective against it, the snorlax barely seemed to have felt the attack.  
  
'Snorlax, hyper beam!' said Penny.  
  
'Woah,' I breathed. This snorlax must have been at a really high level! It opened its mouth and blasted out a beam of energy, knocking Nidoqueen to the ground.  
  
'Nidoqueen, return!' called Luke. He took out another pokÃ©ball. 'Go Magmar!'  
  
'Wow, Luke has a magmar!' I exclaimed.  
  
'He must have stolen it or something, it's not like he could have caught such a strong pokÃ©mon,' smiled Sand-Cloud. I laughed.  
  
'Magmar, fire punch!'  
  
Luke's magmar seemed pretty strong; the attack did a lot of damage. Snorlax still had to recharge from using its hyper beam, so Luke had the advantage, at least for the moment.  
  
'Magmar, flamethrower!'  
  
'OK Snorlax, get back in there with a body slam!'  
  
'Magmar, smog!' said Luke. Magmar breathed a puff of smoke at Snorlax, causing it to become poisoned. Snorlax was in trouble now.  
  
'Snorlax, rest!' said Penny with a smile. Her snorlax smiled back, then lay on the ground and promptly fell asleep.  
  
'Trust a snorlax to go to sleep in the middle of a battle,' said Luke. 'This'll be easy now! Magmar, flamethrower!'  
  
'Be careful, Luke,' I warned. 'When Snorlax wakes up, its energy will be back to normal!'  
  
'Um.. yeah, I knew that, duh!' said Luke, not very convincingly. 'But if Magmar can knock it out before it wakes up, we can still beat it!'  
  
'I wouldn't be too sure about that,' smiled Penny. She took something out of her pocket.. a small packet containing some kind of powder. Opening it, she sprinkled it over her snorlax. It sniffled a little, then opened its eyes and got back up.  
  
'What the!?' Luke exclaimed.  
  
'Awakening,' said Penny. 'It's an item that wakes up your pokÃ©mon. It's a perfectly legitimate move.'  
  
'Hmm,' said Luke. 'We can still win, Magmar! Flamethrower!'  
  
'Snorlax, body slam!' said Penny. With that attack, Magmar was knocked out. Luke wasn't doing too well so far..  
  
'Magmar return,' he said unhappily. 'OK Victreebel, your turn!'  
  
He tossed a pokÃ©ball and his victreebel appeared.  
  
'Snorlax, hyper beam!' said Penny. Her pokÃ©mon attacked, and dealt a lot of damage to Victreebel.  
  
'Victreebel, sleep powder!' said Luke.  
  
'Ooh, tricky,' said Penny. 'Send my snorlax to sleep when I've just used my awakening.' She sighed. 'OK Snorlax, return!'  
  
Luke blinked. 'That was easy.'  
  
'Maybe, but this one won't be!' said Penny. 'Go Farfetch'd!'  
  
'That little thing?' Luke asked. 'Come on Victreebel, you can beat that easily! Acid!'  
  
'Treeee!' said Victreebel, splattering poisonous liquid all over the little pokÃ©mon.  
  
'Farfetch'd, swords dance!' said Penny. Her pokÃ©mon spun around in circles, pumping itself up. It didn't do any damage, though.  
  
'Victreebel, slam!' said Luke. His pokÃ©mon leapt at the little bird and knocked it to the ground.  
  
'You'll have to do better than that,' said Penny. 'Farfetch'd, peck!'  
  
'Faaaaaarfetch'd!' said her pokÃ©mon, stabbing at Victreebel with its beak. I was surprised; the attack did a lot of damage.  
  
'Victreebel, acid!' said Luke.  
  
'Farfetch'd, peck!'  
  
After losing so much energy from Snorlax's hyper beam, Victreebel was getting too weak to battle. Luke had no choice but to call it back.  
  
'Alright Jigglypuff, go teach that little thing a lesson!' said Luke. The little pink pokÃ©mon by his side nodded and ran into the battlefield.  
  
'He's going to battle with Jigglypuff?' Sand-Cloud asked. 'It doesn't even know how to battle!'  
  
I shrugged. 'Maybe he's got some kind of plan.'  
  
'Yeah right, as if Luke would plan ahead,' said Sand-Cloud. I rolled my eyes.  
  
'Farfetch'd, slash!'  
  
'Jigglypuff, disable!' said Luke. Jigglypuff managed to disable Farfetch'd's slash attack. That would slow the battle down for a while. 'Now, pound!'  
  
'Jiggleeee!' said his pokÃ©mon, running at Farfetch'd and slamming into it. It actually did a fair amount of damage. Luke must have trained Jigglypuff a lot since I last saw him battle with it.  
  
'Farfetch'd, peck!' said Penny. Her pokÃ©mon attacked, but without a more powerful move like slash it wasn't going to be able to do a lot of damage against the normal-type pokÃ©mon. She obviously realised this, and recalled her pokÃ©mon. 'Let's see how the puff does against the tough! Go, Wigglytuff!'  
  
'Jiggleee...' Jigglypuff said nervously, as Penny released her wigglytuff into the battlefield. This was going to be interesting..  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Thirteen, Chapter Eight  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Jeremy the clefairy trainer, Penny the pokÃ©mon leader of normal, Squirtle the blastoise  
  
'Wigglytuff, double edge!' said Penny. The large rabbit-like pokÃ©mon charged at its unevolved form and threw it to the ground. It was knocked back, hurt from the energy it had used to execute the attack. But Jigglypuff had been hurt even worse.  
  
'Jigglypuff, you can do it!' said Luke. 'Defense curl!'  
  
Jigglypuff curled itself into a ball, raising its defensive power.  
  
'Wigglytuff, double slap!'  
  
Luckily for Luke and Jigglypuff, Penny's pokÃ©mon only managed to hit twice. 'Defense curl!'  
  
'You can't only rely on defense, you know,' said Penny. 'Sooner or later, Wigglytuff will break through and knock it out. Wigglytuff, double edge!'  
  
'Defense curl!' repeated Luke.  
  
'Is he going to attack or what?' I asked.  
  
'Double edge!' said Penny.  
  
'Defense curl!' said Luke. The defense was certainly working; Wigglytuff was doing less and less damage to Jigglypuff each time. But Penny was right; if Jigglypuff didn't attack soon, it would lose.  
  
'Double edge!'  
  
'Defense curl!'  
  
'Double edge!'  
  
'Luke, you have to attack!' I said.  
  
'I know what I'm doing,' smiled Luke. 'Watch this. Jigglypuff, pound!'  
  
'Jiggleee!' said Jigglypuff. It slammed into Wigglytuff, and to my surprise, knocked it out!  
  
'Woah..' I breathed.  
  
'Oh, I get it,' said Gelby. 'Jigglypuff kept using defense curl so that Wigglytuff couldn't do as much damage. But whenever Wigglytuff used double edge, it hurt itself in the process. So when Jigglypuff finally attacked, Wigglytuff had already lost so much energy that it fainted!'  
  
'Wow, Luke actually can battle,' smiled Sand-Cloud. I laughed, then turned my attention back to the battle.  
  
'Go Jiggly!' Luke was cheering. 'Jigglypuff rules!'  
  
'Oh dear,' I said, shaking my head.  
  
'Well fought,' said Penny. 'But your jigglypuff's worn out now, so it's not going to survive long with the next opponent! Go Chansey!'  
  
'She's gonna battle with a chansey?' I asked. 'But they're so pathetic!'  
  
Sand-Cloud laughed. 'Maybe they're not. We'll see.'  
  
'Chansey, minimise!' said Penny. Her pokÃ©mon suddenly shrunk itself to a smaller size.  
  
'Hey, that's cool!' I said.  
  
'See, it's not pathetic,' smiled Sand-Cloud.  
  
'Just 'cause it can do cool tricks doesn't mean it's a good battler,' I pointed out.  
  
'Jigglypuff, pound!' said Luke. His little pokÃ©mon attacked the larger - though smaller than regular - pink pokÃ©mon. It seemed to knock off a lot of damage. But because of Chansey's high hit points, the damage wasn't felt as badly overall.  
  
'Chansey, defense curl!' said Penny.  
  
'Who's relying on defense now?' I heard Luke mutter. 'Jigglypuff, pound!'  
  
The attack missed, and Luke frowned.  
  
'Chansey, doubleslap!' said Penny.  
  
'Chansey! Chansey chansey!' said her pokÃ©mon. It ran over to jigglypuff, picked it up, and started slapping it.  
  
'Noooo don't hurt my jigglypuff!' said Luke, and I groaned. 'Jigglypuff, return! Squirtle, go!'  
  
Luke threw a pokÃ©ball, and his blastoise appeared.  
  
'Um,' said Penny, obviously confused. 'I won't ask. Chansey, light screen!'  
  
'Squirtle, skull bash!' said Luke. His pokÃ©mon lowered its head, building up for the attack.  
  
'Chansey, doubleslap!' said Penny. Her pokÃ©mon didn't do very much damage to the huge - and strong - blastoise.  
  
'Squirtle, go!' said Luke. The blastoise charged at Chansey, hitting it with the skull bash it had prepared for in the previous turn. The power of the attack knocked Chansey out.  
  
'Told you it was pathetic,' I said. Sand-Cloud rolled her eyes.  
  
'Chanseys have bad defense, but good special,' said Gelby. 'I think Penny was hoping Luke would use special attacks instead of physical attacks.'  
  
'Oh, OK,' I said.  
  
'Alright, looks like I'm down to my last pokÃ©mon,' said Penny. 'But it won't be easy. Go Ditto!'  
  
'Another ditto?' I asked, remembering the ditto Penny had used in my battle.  
  
'I just love dittos!' smiled Penny. 'I can't help but use them! They're so funky!'  
  
'Squirtle, hydro pump!' said Luke. His pokÃ©mon loaded its water cannons and fired a blast of water at the ditto. And, to everyone's surprise, the little slimy pokÃ©mon leapt out of the way and evaded the attack! Luke frowned.  
  
'Ditto, you know what to do!' said Penny. 'Transform!'  
  
'Ditto!' nodded the pokÃ©mon. It started changing shape, and within a minute it had turned into a blastoise. Now the battle was going to get interesting..  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Thirteen, Chapter Nine  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson, Jeremy the clefairy trainer, Penny the pokÃ©mon leader of normal, Squirtle the blastoise  
  
'Squirtle, you can beat that copy!' said Luke. 'Withdraw!'  
  
The blastoise pulled itself into its shell, where Ditto couldn't get at it.  
  
'Ditto, bite!' said Penny. Her transformed blastoise bit into Squirtle. It was unable to do a lot of damage through the real blastoise's hard shell.  
  
'Squirtle, skull bash!' said Luke. His pokÃ©mon lowered its head.  
  
'Ditto, use your own skull bash!' said Penny. Her pokÃ©mon nodded and lowered its head, too. Luke's pokÃ©mon charged at hers and attacked, and Ditto retaliated. Both pokÃ©mon were wearing down.  
  
'Squirtle, hydro pump!' said Luke. This time the blast of water hit, and Ditto was hurt quite a lot.  
  
'Ditto, bite!'  
  
'Squirtle, another hydro pump!'  
  
Despite the fact that the hydro pump attacks weren't very effective, they were a lot more powerful than Bite, so Ditto was losing energy more rapidly. The battle was in Luke's favour.  
  
'Ditto, hydro pump!' said Penny. She seemed to be catching on that hydro pump was going to do more damage, but was it too late for Ditto?  
  
'Squirtle, hydro pump!' said Luke. The attack missed again. 'Dammit!'  
  
'Ditto, hydro pump!' copied Penny. The missed attack had caused Squirtle to miss out on what could have been a victory, and now it was barely hanging on to its hit points. But so was Ditto, so maybe Squirtle could still win..  
  
'Squirtle, bite!' said Luke. He obviously didn't want to risk hydro pump missing. His pokÃ©mon bit the opponent, and.. knocked it out! Luke had won!  
  
'Ditto, return,' said Penny. She sighed. 'Two defeats in the last hour, that's depressing. But you won, fair and square. So here's your badge, Luke. Well done.'  
  
'Yeah!' cheered Luke. 'Thanks!'  
  
He took his badge from Penny gratefully, then turned to the rest of us.  
  
'We'd better get going now,' I said. 'I've only got three more badges before I can go to the pokÃ©mon league!'  
  
'Well I think I'm gonna leave you guys, then,' said Luke. 'I've got to earn different badges to you, and besides, I've been travelling with you for way too long.'  
  
I laughed. 'Yeah, we were wondering when you were gonna leave.'  
  
Luke rolled his eyes.  
  
'Hang on,' said Sand-Cloud. 'You mean we sat through this battle for no reason!?'  
  
'Yeah, I did it just to spite you,' said Luke sarcastically. I smiled. 'Well, I'll see you guys later!'  
  
We soon set out travelling again. The closest gym was the one in Dragon Lake City, which was quite a far way from here. I wanted to get there as soon as possible, I was so excited about being able to go to PokÃ©mon League soon!  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Thirteen, Chapter Ten  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Knotty the tangela  
  
We'd been travelling for a few days now. I'd had a few battles with other trainers, but hadn't caught any new pokÃ©mon yet. The pokÃ©mon I had with me were the ones who were the slightly weaker ones, the ones who hadn't done as much battling. I wanted to get them to higher levels so I could use them more regularly in battles. And there was still a long way to go until we got to Dragon Lake City. It was going to be another one of those long days...  
  
'Hey guys!'  
  
It was The Stars! That team of pokÃ©mon trainers we'd met quite some time ago: Sylvia, Lia, Tara and Vanessa. It was good to see them again! I suddenly realised though, that there was someone else with them. A boy, who looked about two years younger than them.  
  
'Wow, your Vulpix is looking strong!' said Sylvia, bending down and patting Tailz. 'I see it's finally grown all six tails!'  
  
'Yeah,' I smiled. 'It only grew the sixth one a few days ago.'  
  
'Oh cool,' nodded Sylvia. She stood up again. 'Oh, that's my brother by the way.'  
  
'Oh right,' I said. 'Um, hi.'  
  
'Hey,' said the boy. 'I take it you're a pokÃ©mon trainer.'  
  
'Yeah,' I said. 'I'm Janet, and these are my friends Sand-Cloud and Gelby.'  
  
'I'm a pokÃ©mon trainer too,' said the boy. 'My name's Hugh. You want to battle?'  
  
'Um,' I said. I hadn't expected to be challenged to a battle so soon after meeting him! 'Yeah, if you want.'  
  
'Good!' said Hugh.  
  
'You're gonna lose, you always lose,' said Sylvia.  
  
'Shut up, what would you know?' her brother demanded. Poor Sylvia.. why was her brother tagging along with them anyway?  
  
'Well come on, let's go,' I said, taking out a pokÃ©ball.  
  
'We'll make it three on three,' said Hugh.  
  
'OK,' I shrugged.  
  
'That's only because he only has three pokÃ©mon,' explained Sylvia.  
  
'No one asked you!' said Hugh. 'OK Raichu, I choose you!'  
  
'Knotty, go!' I said.  
  
'What is that thing?' Hugh asked. I sighed.  
  
'It's a tangela,' I said. 'And despite the fact that no one seems to have heard of them, tangelas are really strong! Knotty, bind!'  
  
'Tan!' said Knotty, wrapping its vines around Raichu.  
  
'That little ball of vines can't beat Raichu!' said Hugh. 'Raichu, thunderbolt attack!'  
  
'R.. rai..' said his pokÃ©mon, struggling. I smiled. While Knotty was using bind, Raichu wouldn't be able to attack at all! My tangela kept binding the raichu, but finally it broke free and let out a thunderbolt attack.  
  
'Hugh,' said Tara. 'Electric attacks won't do much against grass pokÃ©mon, you know.'  
  
'Hmm,' said Hugh. 'Raichu, body slam attack!'  
  
'Knotty, absorb!' I said. Knotty sucked back some of the energy Raichu had managed to take out of it, though not enough for it to recover fully.  
  
'Raichu, thunderwave!' said Hugh. My tangela was paralysed by the electric waves.  
  
'Knotty, stun spore!' I said with a smile. Let's see how he likes it!  
  
'Hey, no fair!' said Hugh, watching as his pokÃ©mon, too, was gripped by paralysis.  
  
'Now Knotty, constrict!' I said. Knotty wrapped its vines around Raichu, draining the last of its power.  
  
'Raichu return!' said Hugh. 'Fine, let's see how you like this! You don't fight fire with fire, but you fight grass with grass! Go Bulbasaur!'  
  
'Bulbasaur?' I asked. 'Knotty, you can beat it easily! Constrict!'  
  
'Bulbasaur, solar beam!' said Hugh. I stared. Was I hearing right? His bulbasaur knew solar beam!? Maybe this wasn't going to be as easy as I'd thought..  
  
'Knotty, stun spore!' I said, hoping that paralysis would stop Bulbasaur from firing the beam. Unfortunately, the stun spore missed, the solar beam connected, and my poor tangela was knocked out! 'Knotty return!'  
  
~Janet~  
  
Part Thirteen, Chapter Eleven  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Sylvia the electric- type trainer, Lia the ice-type trainer, Tara the electric-type trainer, Vanessa the psychic-type trainer, Hugh, Bybee the raticate, Evy the vaporeon  
  
'Knotty return! Go Bybee!'  
  
'Bulbasaur, razor leaf!' said Hugh, pointing at my raticate. His bulbasaur sent out its leaves, cutting into Bybee and hurting it a lot.  
  
'Bybee, super fang!' I said.  
  
'Bulbasaur, tackle!'  
  
'Bybee hyper fang!' I grinned as my raticate knocked out his pokÃ©mon. I really liked that move!  
  
'The last one won't be easy!' said Hugh. 'Go Butterfree!'  
  
'Butterfree?' Sand-Cloud asked. 'I was expecting like a mewtwo or something.'  
  
I laughed.  
  
'Mewtwo..' said Vanessa absently. I paused, then decided to ignore that.  
  
'Bybee, super fang!' I said. Bybee bit the pokÃ©mon, draining its power rapidly.  
  
'Butterfree, psybeam!' said Hugh. His pokÃ©mon hit Bybee with a blast of psychic energy, knocking it out. This butterfree was strong..  
  
'Bybee return,' I said. 'Alright, go Evy!'  
  
'Butterfree, tackle!' said Hugh. I was surprised at the amount of damage such a standard attack did to my vaporeon.  
  
'Evy, aurora beam!' I said. Luckily, Evy's ice-type attack also did a lot of damage, though not enough to make Butterfree faint.  
  
'Butterfree, gust!' said Hugh.  
  
'Freee!' said his pokÃ©mon, beating its wings rapidly and sending a hard wind flying at Evy. My pokÃ©mon was knocked back.  
  
'Come on Evy, you can do it!' I said. 'Aurora beam!'  
  
'Poreon!' said Evy, shooting an ice-filled energy beam at Butterfree.  
  
'Butterfree, psybeam! Finish it!' said Hugh. Fortunately for Evy, the attack didn't "finish it", though it nearly did. Evy barely had any strength left, but hopefully it'd be able to still win..  
  
'Evy, aurora beam!' I said, and bit my lip in anticipation. The butterfree hung in there, determined not to give up.  
  
'Free!' it said proudly.  
  
'Butterfree, tackle!' said Hugh.  
  
'Free free freeeee!' said his pokÃ©mon, swooping down and knocking Evy to the ground.  
  
'Va.. vap.. poren..' sighed Evy, collapsing.  
  
'Evy, return,' I said. I looked up at the boy, who was happily hugging his butterfree.  
  
'Great work Butterfree, you're the best!' he said.  
  
'Um.. well done,' I said. I don't think I really meant it. I was really disappointed that I'd lost, especially since Sylvia had said that Hugh always lost. Then again, he was her brother, she was probably just saying that to annoy him.  
  
Ten minutes or so later, we'd decided to travel with The Stars (and Hugh) for the next few weeks. Despite the fact that they weren't actually competing for badges, they were interested in going to Dragon Lake City. So the eight of us set off for another long few weeks of travelling..  
  
~Janet~  
  
END OF PART THIRTEEN 


	16. Part Fourteen

Part Fourteen, Chapter One  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Sylvia the fire-type trainer, Lia the ice-type trainer, Tara the electric-type trainer, Vanessa the psychic-type trainer, Hugh, Tailz the vulpix  
  
Dragon Lake City was huge! And it wasn't your average city, either. All the buildings had unusual, medieval-style architecture. And there was, as the name suggested, a lake running right through the middle of the city. The city seemed to be absolutely full of various stores, both pokÃ©mon- related and not. Tara said she couldn't wait to go shopping. I couldn't wait to get to that gym!  
  
First, though, we had to go to the PokÃ©mon Centre and heal our pokÃ©mon. I also had to decide which pokÃ©mon I'd take to my gym battle. I assumed that the leader used dragon-type pokÃ©mon, from the name of the city. I couldn't remember ever fighting dragon-types before, so I didn't know which pokÃ©mon were best against them. In the end I decided to take Slothie, Seaworth, Tailz, Catafree, Bybee and Pikapi.  
  
'Hi there! Are you here to battle the gym leader?'  
  
I turned and saw a tall girl, probably a few years older than me, standing there smiling at me. She looked strangely familiar..  
  
'Yeah, I am,' I said. 'Um, have we met before?'  
  
The girl titled her head. 'I don't know. I can't really see you very clearly, I kind of dropped my contact lenses on the way in here..'  
  
I laughed. 'Jade! The ice gym leader!'  
  
'Wow, you know me, that's so cool!' exclaimed the girl. 'I guess that means we battled before. Sorry, I don't recognise you, what's your name?'  
  
'Janet,' I said. 'From Team Yellow.'  
  
'Oh, I remember you!' said Jade. 'You knocked out all my pokÃ©mon with that cute little vulpix!'  
  
'Vul!' smiled Tailz. Jade giggled and patted my pokÃ©mon on the head.  
  
'Hello Vulpix, remember me?' she asked.  
  
'Pix!' nodded Tailz. I smiled.  
  
'So what are you doing so far from Azure Town?' I asked.  
  
'Oh, I'm here visiting Murray!' said Jade. I paused.  
  
'That's right, I remember now!' I said. 'Murray's the dragon-type gym leader, he was visiting you when I battled you in Azure Town!'  
  
'Oh, so you've already met!' said Jade. 'That's so cool! Come on, I'll take you to him if you're ready!'  
  
'Yeah, I'm ready,' I said. I got up, and we were about to leave the PokÃ©Centre, when Lia stepped in front of Jade.  
  
'Wow, the ice-type gym leader!' she said. 'It's an honour to meet you. I'm Lia, I train ice pokÃ©mon too!'  
  
'Really!?' Jade exclaimed. 'Wow! That's so cool! Aren't ice pokÃ©mon the coolest!? There aren't many ice-type trainers but I don't know why 'cause ice pokÃ©mon are so cool!'  
  
'I know!' said Lia. 'Everyone totally underestimates them!'  
  
'And they're so cute too!' said Jade. 'And Articuno is so beautiful--'  
  
'Articuno!' exclaimed Lia. 'It's my life-long dream to capture an articuno! Have you ever seen one?'  
  
'No, I haven't!' said Jade. 'But I want to sooo much because they're sooo cool!'  
  
I sighed and turned to Sand-Cloud and Gelby. 'We could be here for hours at this rate. Should we just go?'  
  
'Yeah, I'm sure we can find our own way to the gym,' said Sand-Cloud.  
  
'Let's go then,' I said. Sylvia also came with us, possibly to get away from her brother. As we left the gym, I heard Lia and Jade saying something about how evil fire pokÃ©mon were or something. Sylvia frowned.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Fourteen, Chapter Two  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Sylvia the fire-type trainer, Murray the pokÃ©mon leader of dragon, Bybee the raticate, Slothie the snorlax, Tailz the vulpix  
  
'Hey Sylvia, do you know which pokÃ©mon are best against dragon-types?' I asked as we headed towards Dragon Lake City Gym.  
  
'Yeah,' said Sylvia. 'Lia's always telling me that ice-types are the only moves that are super-effective against dragons.'  
  
'Really?' I asked. I laughed. 'Maybe that's why Jade came to visit Murray, so she could show off her ice pokÃ©mon! Well, I hope I can win.. I really need that dragon badge..' I paused. 'Getting a dragon badge off Murray... why does that sound strangely familiar?'  
  
'Hey, you're right!' said Sylvia. Sand-Cloud and Gelby looked confused.  
  
'What are you going on about?' Sand-Cloud asked.  
  
'You know, I'm not really sure,' I said. 'Um, let's just hurry up and get to that gym..'  
  
The gym was a huge building decorated elaborately with statues and paintings of the three dragon pokÃ©mon: Dratini, Dragonair and Dragonite. The whole place seemed to be totally abandoned though; there were no trainers in sight, and there was an eerie silence in the air..  
  
We soon reached two large, artistically carved wooden doors. I pushed them open, and saw a large stadium - which seemed bigger than usual - and at the far end of the room, a tall man sat with his arms folded. He looked up, saw us, then rose.  
  
'Hey there,' he said casually. 'You here for a gym battle?'  
  
'Yeah,' I nodded. 'My name's Janet. I don't know if you remember me, we met back in Azure Town..'  
  
'Oh, yeah I remember you!' nodded Murray. 'The girl with the vulpix!'  
  
I laughed. 'Yeah.'  
  
'Well, you were a pretty impressive battler back then,' said Murray. 'And it's been, what, ten months? I'm sure you're a most worthy opponent at this stage. How many badges do you have?'  
  
'Twelve,' I smiled.  
  
'Ooh, that is impressive,' said Murray. 'You're almost ready for the pokÃ©mon league. Well.. enough chat.. let's get started!'  
  
'Sounds good to me,' I said. I took out a pokÃ©ball. 'Bybee, go!'  
  
'Dratini, I choose you!' said Murray, throwing his own pokÃ©ball. A cute serpentine pokÃ©mon appeared. Dratini was the weakest of the dragon pokÃ©mon; hopefully this battle would be easy..  
  
'Bybee, super fang!' I said.  
  
'Rrrrrrrraticate!' growled my pokÃ©mon, biting the opponent hard. Super fang was a great move to start off a battle with, as it drained half of the defending pokÃ©mon's hit points straight away. So far, the battle was in my favour.  
  
'Dratini, thunderwave!' said Murray.  
  
'Dra!' said Dratini. Blasting electric currents at my raticate, it managed to paralyse Bybee.  
  
'Wow, Dratini knows electric attacks?' I asked. This was going to make the battle harder. Paralysis was a really bad effect on a raticate, as its natural advantage - its speed - was greatly reduced.  
  
'Dratini, wrap!' said Murray. Dratini snaked itself around Bybee and crunched its energy.. things really weren't looking so good anymore.  
  
'Bybee return!' I called. 'Go Slothie!'  
  
I wanted to get this dratini out of the way quickly, and Slothie's strength would hopefully be able to do that.  
  
'Dratini, dragon rage!' said Murray. His pokÃ©mon narrowed its eyes and puffed out a flow of blue-coloured energy. It didn't do very much damage to my snorlax.  
  
'Slothie, body slam!' I said.  
  
'Snooor!' said Slothie, leaping into the air and dropping back to the ground, crushing Dratini. When it lifted itself up again, the dragon pokÃ©mon was crushed, and out of energy.  
  
'Dratini return!' called Murray. 'Let's step up a bit here.. go Dragonair!'  
  
A longer, more elegant, and undoubtedly tougher, dragon appeared from his pokÃ©ball.  
  
'Slothie, body slam!' I said. Slothie's weight crushing down on it certainly caused a lot of damage to the dragonair, but not enough to hinder its fighting abilities.  
  
'Dragonair, slam!' said Murray.  
  
'Dragon!' said Dragonair, leaping towards Slothie and slapping it hard with its body.  
  
'Snor..' moaned Slothie.  
  
'Slothie, you can do it,' I said. 'Try a headbutt!'  
  
Slothie slammed its big head into Dragonair, but still the dragon pokÃ©mon wasn't giving up.  
  
'Dragonair, leer!'  
  
'Slothie, body slam!'  
  
'Now Dragonair, wrap it!'  
  
Dragonair wrapped its body around Slothie and started to crush my snorlax. It wasn't doing a great deal of damage, but while being wrapped, Slothie was unable to move. I wasn't sure how much longer I could take this..  
  
'Slothie return!' I said. I turned to my vulpix. 'OK Tailz, your turn!'  
  
'Yay!' cheered Sylvia. 'Go Tailz!'  
  
'Vulpix!' smiled Tailz, running into the battlefield. I just hoped it could beat that tough dragonair.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Fourteen, Chapter Three  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Sylvia the fire-type trainer, Murray the pokÃ©mon leader of dragon, Tailz the vulpix, Catafree the butterfree, Pikapi the raichu, Seaworth the seel  
  
'Let's show that dragonair what it's like to be wrapped,' I said. 'Fire spin, Tailz!'  
  
'Vul!' nodded Tailz. 'Vuuuul.. pix!'  
  
A ring of fire encircled Dragonair, immobilising it, and causing damage too. It didn't do a lot of damage, but at least that dragonair wasn't attacking for the moment!  
  
'Dragonair, try and break free!' said Murray. His pokÃ©mon struggled, and after a few minutes pulled itself out of the flaming net. It seemed to have taken a lot more damage from the attack than I had expected. 'OK Dragonair, slam!'  
  
'Vul!' cried Tailz, as Murray's pokÃ©mon knocked it to the ground.  
  
'Tailz, flamethrower!' I said. The attack didn't do a lot of damage..  
  
'Janet!' called Sylvia. 'Fire moves aren't very effective against dragon pokÃ©mon! Try something else.'  
  
I nodded. 'Thanks Sylvia. OK Tailz, try a quick attack!'  
  
'Pix!' said Tailz, charging at the dragonair. The attack did a little more damage, but still not a lot. Dragon pokÃ©mon were stronger than I'd expected.  
  
'Dragonair, dragon rage!' said Murray. His pokÃ©mon attacked, and greatly weakened Tailz. The little vulpix was getting really weak.  
  
'OK Tailz, that's enough,' I called. My pokÃ©mon lifted its head, nodded, and came trotting back to me weakly. I bent down and patted it on the head. 'You did well. Now it's your turn, Catafree!'  
  
'An interesting choice,' said Murray. 'But Dragonair can beat it! Slam!'  
  
'Catafree, psybeam!' I said.  
  
'Free!' Catafree fired a psybeam at Dragonair, and knocked it out! So much for Dragonair beating it! I smiled.  
  
'That butterfree's stronger than I thought,' said Murray. 'But it's no match for my last pokÃ©mon! I choose.. Dragonite!'  
  
So Murray only had three pokÃ©mon. I should have expected that; there were only three dragon-type pokÃ©mon, after all! This last one looked particularly tough, though. Unlike Dratini and Dragonair, Dragonite was shaped a lot more like the typical mythical dragon. It had strong legs, arms, and wings.. all of which would help it in battle. This could be difficult.. but luckily for me I still had three pokÃ©mon left.  
  
'Catafree, psybeam now!' I said.  
  
'Nite..' yawned Dragonite, practically ignoring the attack. Catafree and I gasped. This was one tough pokÃ©mon!  
  
'Dragonite, hyper beam,' smiled Murray.  
  
'Oh oh..' I breathed. Dragonite blasted Catafree with its most powerful attack. My butterfree managed to hang in there, but only just. 'Catafree, use psybeam!'  
  
'Free!' Catafree charged up the last of its energy and hit Dragonite with its psychic powers. My butterfree then fainted under the effort. I guiltily called it back; had I worked it too hard?  
  
'Pikapi, your turn,' I said, tossing another pokÃ©ball. Unfortunately, Dragonite had charged itself back up by then..  
  
'Dragonite, hyper beam.' said Murray. Another blast of Dragonite's power knocked back a lot of Pikapi's hit points, but it was still able to battle.  
  
'Pikapi, thunder!' I said.  
  
'Raiiiichu!' said Pikapi, sending a bolt of electric energy at Dragonite. The attack hit, and managed to take off a reasonable amount of damage. But Dragonite was still fighting fit..  
  
'Quick Pikapi, thunderbolt it before it finishes recharging!' I said. Pikapi nodded and attacked, knocking off a little more of Dragonite's hit points.  
  
'Dragonite, finish it off! Slam!' said Murray. His big pokÃ©mon knocked into my little one, causing it to faint.  
  
'Pikapi return!' I called. I was down to my last pokÃ©mon now.. 'Seaworth! Go!'  
  
I wasn't going to forget what Sylvia had told me about ice moves being super-effective against dragon pokÃ©mon, and I was glad I had Seaworth left..  
  
'Dragonite, hyper beam!' said Murray. I grinned as Seaworth dodged the attack.  
  
'Seaworth, great work!' I called. 'Now, aurora beam!'  
  
'Seel!' nodded Seaworth. The ice attack seemed to drain a lot of Dragonite's energy. If I was lucky, we might just be able to win this. Seaworth hit Dragonite with another aurora beam as it waited for the dragon to recharge. Murray's pokÃ©mon was slowly wearing down. And its hyper beam only had two power points left; if Seaworth could stand two more hyper beams, we'd win for sure!  
  
'Dragonite, hyper beam!' Murray said, predictably. This time the attack hit, and Seaworth was blown back with the power.  
  
'Seeeel!' it cried. I bit my lip. It had to be able to win this, it had to!  
  
'Seaworth, hang in there!' I said. 'You can do it, I know you can! Just keep up that aurora beam! You can probably hit it twice before it recharges; quick!'  
  
'Seel seel!' said Seaworth, getting up and facing the worn out dragonite. It let out two frozen energy beams, and Dragonite cried out in pain. The big dragon pokÃ©mon slowly fell to the ground. Defeated!  
  
'Great work, Seaworth!' I cheered.  
  
'Seel,' smiled Seaworth. 'Se.. seel?'  
  
I blinked as I saw Seaworth starting to glow. Was it.. evolving!?  
  
'Seel!' cried Seaworth, cringing and shaking its head. 'Seel seeeel!'  
  
'What's wrong, Seaworth?' I asked worriedly, rushing over to it.  
  
'I think it's saying it doesn't want to evolve..' said Gelby. I turned and looked at her for a moment, then turned back to Seaworth.  
  
'Is that what it is, Seaworth?' I asked. My seel looked up at me, almost guiltily.  
  
'Seel..' it said.  
  
'Seaworth, if you don't want to evolve, you don't have to!' I said. 'It's fine by me; I like you just the way you are!'  
  
'Seel?' Seaworth asked, its eyes lighting up. I smiled.  
  
'I'm more than happy for you to stay as a seel!' I said. Seaworth smiled, and I took out my pokÃ©dex. It was blinking, telling me that my pokÃ©mon was evolving. I pressed the cancel button, and suddenly Seaworth stopped glowing. It breathed a sigh of relief. I stared at my pokÃ©dex, still not really understanding how an electronic piece of equipment had so much power when it came to pokÃ©mon. Then I hugged Seaworth, pulled it into my arms and stood up.  
  
'Congrats Janet,' said Murray, walking over to me with something in his hand. He gave it to me, and sure enough it was a badge. 'You fought really well, but not only that, you proved that you really care about your pokÃ©mon. I've met lots of trainers who force their pokÃ©mon to evolve, but you've shown that you understand your pokÃ©mon and let them make their own decisions.'  
  
I smiled, blushing slightly. 'Thanks.'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Fourteen, Chapter Four  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Sylvia the fire-type trainer, Lia the ice-type trainer, Tara the electric-type trainer, Vanessa the psychic-type trainer, Hugh, Jade the pokÃ©mon leader of ice  
  
'.. and the way wild lapras let you go right up to them and sometimes even ride them!'  
  
'And dewgongs are so beautiful, they swim so elegantly!'  
  
'I know! They're so cool! And what about cloysters, how they..'  
  
Sylvia collapsed beside Tara, Vanessa and Hugh.  
  
'Did they even notice we'd gone?' she asked.  
  
'I doubt it,' sighed Tara. 'They've been talking about ice pokÃ©mon since you left.'  
  
I laughed.  
  
'Oh, how'd your battle go, anyway, Janet?' Tara asked.  
  
'I won!' I said, showing off my latest badge. 'Now I only have two more badges to get! I'm so excited!'  
  
'Good, once you're a pokÃ©mon master, we can stop all this walking,' complained Sand-Cloud, sitting down beside Sylvia.  
  
'And we can sleep in again,' yawned Gelby.  
  
'Why are you tired? You haven't done anything all day!' I said. 'Now come on, we've gotta get going again! We have to get to the next gym!'  
  
'Nooo!' Sand-Cloud moaned. 'Give it a rest, Janet. Like you said, you've only got to get two more badges. They can wait.'  
  
'No they can't!' I complained.  
  
'We'll leave tomorrow,' said Sand-Cloud. 'At least give your pokÃ©mon a rest!'  
  
'Yeah yeah,' I said, rolling my eyes.  
  
The next morning we were ready to set out again. Lia had decided to go with Jade back to Azure Town to see all the ice pokÃ©mon, and naturally the rest of The Stars (and Hugh) had to go with them. So we said goodbye (and I told them that if they saw any wild seels there, to say hi from Seaworth!) and set out on our own path.  
  
'The last two gyms are in Little Town and Charcoal Town,' said Sand- Cloud. 'Little Town's the closest, so I say we head there.'  
  
'Little Town?' I asked. 'What kind of stupid name for a town is that?'  
  
'The point is, there's a gym there,' said Sand-Cloud. I smiled, and nodded.  
  
'Hey look!' said Gelby. 'It's one of those PokÃ©mon Safari places!'  
  
I groaned. 'I've had bad experiences with those places.' I remembered the time Ace and Kat had stolen my pokÃ©mon at the last PokÃ©mon Safari we went to, and I'd had to fight to get them back.  
  
'Yeah, but this place could be better,' said Sand-Cloud. 'And you haven't caught any pokÃ©mon for a long time, you're getting a bit slack if you ask me.'  
  
I rolled my eyes. 'OK, OK, we'll have a look.'  
  
We headed inside the building and took a look around. This PokÃ©mon Safari certainly seemed a lot more.. official.. than the previous one. The walls were covered in photos and newspaper articles about the various rare pokÃ©mon which had been found in this PokÃ©mon Safari. Some of the photos showed full herds of rapidashes, families of kangaskhans, flocks of pidgeots. My pokÃ©mon were at quite high levels now, so catching those pokÃ©mon wouldn't be too hard, would it? I smiled.  
  
'Where do we pay?' I asked. Sand-Cloud laughed.  
  
'So you're convinced,' she said. 'Well, I'd say you go to the desk over there and ring the bell.'  
  
I did so, and almost immediately a door opened and in walked a young trainer with a mankey sitting on his shoulders.  
  
'Hey there, how ya going?' he asked.  
  
'Alright,' I shrugged. 'Um, can we go into the Safari?'  
  
'Sure thing!' said the trainer. 'You can catch up to three pokÃ©mon, and spend as long as you want.'  
  
I nodded. So it was the same rules as the other place. Hopefully I'd find a rare or strong three pokÃ©mon to capture here! I paid the man, and we headed into the safari..  
  
~Janet~  
  
Part Fourteen, Chapter Five  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Tailz the vulpix  
  
We'd been walking through the PokÃ©mon Safari for two hours now. While we'd seen plenty of rattatas, spearows and pikachus, we hadn't come across any rare pokÃ©mon yet. I was starting to get impatient; from the way they'd presented the photos and reports in the Safari building, it had made it seem like the place was absolutely full of rare and valuable pokÃ©mon.  
  
'Vul..' said Tailz, sniffing at the ground.  
  
'What is it, Tailz?' I asked. 'You smell a rare pokÃ©mon?'  
  
'Vul.. vulpix!' said Tailz, nodding. I smiled.  
  
'Great work, lead us to it!' I said. Tailz happily started bounding away; we followed.  
  
It wasn't long before we reached a lake running through a small clearing. Sitting at the edge of the lake was a group of baby squirtles! I broke into a smile. I'd wanted a squirtle for such a long time, and now I finally had a chance to get one! I bent down and patted Tailz.  
  
'Thanks a lot, Tailz,' I whispered. I slowly edged closer to the squirtles, not wanting to scare them. I took out an empty greatball; they were only babies, so they probably wouldn't need to be weakened before capturing. Once I was close enough, I stood up and threw the ball. 'Greatball, go!'  
  
'Squirtle!' the group turned, startled. Most of them dived into the water, afraid. But I managed to hit one with the greatball, and it was pulled inside. I grinned, ran over to the ball and picked it up.  
  
'I got a squirtle!' I cheered. I named my new pokÃ©mon "Ripple", and the ball disappeared, transferring itself to the Safari building. 'Yay!'  
  
'Shh, be quiet or you'll scare all the other pokÃ©mon!' said Sand-Cloud.  
  
I rolled my eyes. 'They probably all ran away when I threw the greatball anyway.'  
  
Suddenly there was a distinctive thumping sound. I gulped. The thumping continued, getting louder and faster.  
  
'Oh.. oh..' breathed Gelby.  
  
'Janet, look out!' said Sand-Cloud. I slowly turned around, afraid of what I'd see. There before me, was a huge blastoise glaring down at me, its cannons ready to fire.  
  
'Blast..' it growled. I swallowed, took a deep breath, and turned and ran, as did the others. The blastoise followed, determined not to stop until it paid me back for scaring the squirtles.. and capturing one at that!  
  
'Vul.. vul..' puffed Tailz as it ran along. It turned its head back, still running, and let out a flamethrower. 'Vuuuuul!'  
  
'Save your energy, Tailz!' I said. 'It's too strong!'  
  
'Pix!' said Tailz defiantly, shaking its head. It halted, turned around completely, and shot another flamethrower at the blastoise.  
  
'Tailz, no!' I said, stopping and running back to it. The blastoise aimed its cannons at my vulpix angrily.  
  
'Blast!' it roared, and fired.  
  
'Vuuuuulpix!' squealed Tailz, thrown back by the power of the attack. It landed on the ground about a hundred metres away. I gasped. That was one powerful blastoise.  
  
'Tailz!' I cried, running for my vulpix. The poor little thing must have been hurt so badly! I soon reached it, cowering on the ground, whimpering. 'Oh Tailz, you shouldn't put yourself in danger like that.. you poor thing..'  
  
But before I could do anything to help Tailz, I had to do something about that blastoise, before it caused any more damage.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Fourteen, Chapter Six  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Tailz the vulpix, Pikapi the raichu  
  
'You're gonna regret hurting Tailz!' I said angrily, as the blastoise approached me. 'I may have caught one of your friends, and I'm sorry I had to do that, but I'm going to care for that squirtle and train it to become the best pokÃ©mon it can be, just like the rest of my pokÃ©mon! Now I'm going to teach you a lesson for picking on an innocent vulpix! Go, Pikapi!'  
  
I threw a pokÃ©ball, and my raichu appeared.  
  
'Rai rai!' it growled.  
  
'Pikapi, thunder!' I said.  
  
'Rai! Rai... CHU!' said Pikapi, leaping into the air and attacking the blastoise with its electricity. The super-effective move from my strong raichu must have really hurt the blastoise. It growled, then turned and walked away angrily. I stared after it for a moment, then remembered Tailz. I bent down to my pokÃ©mon.  
  
'Oh Tailz,' I sighed.  
  
'Rai..' said Pikapi worriedly.  
  
'Vul vulpix..' whimpered Tailz. I pulled it carefully into my arms.  
  
'Let's find somewhere to rest,' I said.  
  
We'd barely begun moving when we heard a low growl, and different, more rapid, thumping sound on the ground.  
  
'You aren't gonna believe this..' said Sand-Cloud. I turned to see what it was that was chasing us this time. 'There's kind of a hoard of rhyhorns coming our way..'  
  
'Oh no,' I moaned. Rhyhorns were unstoppable when they stampeded. And they were heading straight for us; what were we going to do? There was only one solution: run. I quickly pulled Pikapi back into its pokÃ©ball and we fled out of there as fast as we could.  
  
'Vul..' moaned the sick Tailz in my arms.  
  
'It's OK Tailz, we'll be safe soon,' I said reassuringly. I wasn't entirely sure who I was trying to reassure more; Tailz or myself.  
  
The rhyhorns were gaining on us steadily, and if we didn't find somewhere to hide soon, we'd be done for.  
  
'Why are they chasing us anyway?' Sand-Cloud panted. 'What'd we do to them?'  
  
'Who knows!' I puffed. I was having a hard time trying to escape these rhyhorns; carrying Tailz wasn't exactly making the running easier.  
  
We'd only been running for about two minutes, when I tripped on a fallen tree branch, stumbled, and fell to the ground. Tailz flew out of my arms in the process, and landed with a thump ahead of me.  
  
'Tailz!' I cried, scrambling to my feet, rushing over to the vulpix and picking it up. 'Tailz, are you OK!?'  
  
'Piiiix..' moaned Tailz. I felt tears in my eyes. Poor Tailz was getting worse by the minute, and this was all my fault! If only I hadn't caught that squirtle.. none of this would have happened! Tailz had been trying to protect me, and look what had happened to it.  
  
'Janet!' I heard Sand-Cloud yell. 'Hurry up!'  
  
I suddenly remembered the stampeding rhyhorns on my trail, and quickly broke into a run again. My legs were killing me.. I didn't know how much longer I could take this. But I had to keep going, I had to escape them somehow.. or who knows what would happen to myself, and to Tailz?  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Fourteen, Chapter Seven  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Tailz the vulpix  
  
It seemed like we'd been running for hours, but the rhyhorns were still on our trail. I felt that if we kept this up much longer, my legs would just stop working altogether and we'd be done for. I didn't have any pokÃ©mon with me that I could escape on either. The only one I had that was big enough to carry me was Chazz. It couldn't run very fast on foot, and we'd be too heavy for it to carry while flying. So I just had to rely on myself.  
  
'Up ahead, there's some kind of thicket!' said Gelby. 'If we can get in there, the rhyhorns won't be able to get to us as easily.. that might stop them, or at least slow them down!'  
  
I nodded, and forced myself to keep running. We soon reached the dense bushes, and pretty much dived in. The rhyhorns slowed down alright; they pretty much halted to a stop when they saw that they were coming to a wooded area. Rhyhorns were ground pokÃ©mon, and lived in more open spaces; they didn't like trees or even undergrowth very much.  
  
One of the rhyhorns started sniffing around at the plants, and then started trying to tear them apart. I took a deep breath, and stood back up.  
  
'Come on, let's get as far away as we can,' I said. The others nodded, forced themselves up, and we headed deeper into the bushes. Once the rhyhorns were out of sight and hearing, we collapsed on the ground again. Sitting there puffing like mad, we tried to regain our breathing. This hadn't been a good day..  
  
But it was about to get worse. No sooner had we begun to recover from the chase, that it started to rain. And when I say rain, I mean pour. The water just pelted down from the sky as if it was a pidgeot performing a sky attack.  
  
'Vul vul..' whimpered Tailz. As a fire pokÃ©mon, rain wasn't very good for the vulpix. It wasn't the same as an attack from a water pokÃ©mon, nor was it as bad for a vulpix as for, say, a charmander.. but it still wasn't going to do Tailz any good.  
  
'Tailz, I'm sorry,' I said, and felt tears running down my face. I hugged my vulpix tightly. 'I'm so sorry Tailz, it's all my fault!'  
  
'Vulpix,' said Tailz, and licked my face. I smiled.  
  
'Oh Tailz, you're so kind..' I said. 'You're sick and injured because of me, and you're still being so nice to me.. you're a great friend Tailz, I'm.. I'm so grateful for you.'  
  
'Vul,' smiled Tailz, and then cringed as a raindrop fell on its face.  
  
'Tailz,' I said, suddenly realising what I had to do. 'Tailz, I know you're afraid, but.. there's only one way I can keep you safe now. You have to go inside a pokÃ©ball.'  
  
Tailz's eyes widened, and it pulled back, but didn't say anything.  
  
'Please,' I said, taking out an empty pokÃ©ball. 'It's the only way, Tailz. And it's not that bad, trust me. None of the others mind it. If you just try it, maybe you'll even like it. But you won't know until you do try. You'll be safe in there, Tailz. So come on.'  
  
I held the ball out to the vulpix. Tailz looked away. I sighed and looked at its sad face. The rain soaking its fur, almost made it look like it was crying. Maybe it was, on the inside.  
  
'I'm sorry Tailz,' I said. 'I.. I won't make you do it, but I really think that.. it's best.'  
  
The vulpix didn't look at me. I sighed and stood up, leaving the empty pokÃ©ball beside Tailz. I turned to my friends.  
  
'I don't know what to do, guys,' I said. They looked up at me, soaking wet and dispirited. They didn't say anything. I sighed again and looked up at the sky, the rain pouring down on us. I wondered if it would ever stop..  
  
And then, I heard the sound of a pokÃ©ball clicking shut.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Fourteen, Chapter Eight  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Chazz the charizard, Tailz the vulpix  
  
We ended up spending the night there, in the pouring rain with no shelter. Tailz was safe in its pokÃ©ball, and despite how guilty I felt about it, at least I knew that it was alright.  
  
The next day we set out to just get away from this place. I was fed up with PokÃ©mon Safaris, to tell you the truth. I didn't care that I'd only caught one pokÃ©mon, I just wanted out. I let Chazz out of its pokÃ©ball to try and warm us up as we walked. It seemed a little shocked that Tailz wasn't with us.  
  
'It went in its pokÃ©ball,' I said.  
  
'Char?' Chazz blinked.  
  
'It was really badly hurt, and that was the only way to save it,' I said. 'I know it's really scared of pokÃ©balls, but it was all we could do.'  
  
Chazz nodded.  
  
'Oh, you're back? You only captured one pokÃ©mon..'  
  
'Yeah, I know.. my vulpix got really sick, and we were chased by a blastoise and a pack of rhyhorns, and caught in a storm.. and well, we're just sick of this place,' I said bluntly.  
  
'Oh,' said the man. 'Alright, well.. I'm sorry it didn't quite work out for you. Your pokÃ©mon is here.. a cute little light blue squirtle.'  
  
'That's it,' I said. The man handed me my pokÃ©ball, and we gratefully headed out of the PokÃ©mon Safari. 'Remind me to never, ever go to one of those places again!'  
  
We finally made it to a PokÃ©Centre that night, and I healed my pokÃ©mon straight away, telling Nurse Joy to give Tailz special treatment. When my pokÃ©balls were returned, I released Tailz.  
  
'How are you feeling, Tailz?' I asked.  
  
'Vulpix vul!' it barked happily. I smiled. It was great to see a smile on its face again!  
  
'I hope you weren't too scared, being in the pokÃ©ball..' I said.  
  
'Vulpix,' said Tailz, shaking its head.  
  
'It wasn't so bad?' I asked.  
  
'Vul,' smiled Tailz. It gestured to the pokÃ©ball. 'Vul vulpix! Vulpix vul vulpix pix pix!'  
  
'Any ideas what it's saying?' I asked my friends.  
  
'It looks to me that Tailz is trying to tell you it didn't actually mind being in the pokÃ©ball..' said Sand-Cloud.  
  
'Is that what you're saying, Tailz?' I asked. 'That the pokÃ©ball wasn't bad after all?'  
  
'Vulpix vul!' nodded Tailz. I smiled.  
  
'Wow, that's great Tailz!' I said. 'I'm glad you overcame your fear. It takes a lot of guts to do something like that. You were very brave, going inside the pokÃ©ball!'  
  
'Pix..' Tailz blushed.  
  
'So.. does this mean you won't mind going in there anymore?' I asked carefully, not sure if that was what it wanted to tell me or not.  
  
Tailz paused, then nodded. 'Vulpix.'  
  
'You sure?' I asked. It nodded. 'Well.. I'm going to miss having you walk beside me, but.. if that's what you want.'  
  
'Vulpix,' nodded Tailz. With a smile, I patted it on the head.  
  
'Well, I guess we'd better get going again,' I said, taking out a pokÃ©ball to put Tailz in.  
  
'Not so fast! You're not getting away that easily!'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Fourteen, Chapter Nine  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Mitch Oiren, Chazz the charizard, Slothie the snorlax  
  
'Mitch,' I said.  
  
'Janet,' sneered Mitch.  
  
'I haven't seen you in a while,' I said, then added, 'Fortunately.'  
  
'And there's a good reason for that,' said Mitch. 'Guess who has thirteen badges, huh?'  
  
I burst out laughing. 'Um.. me.'  
  
'What!?' Mitch exclaimed. 'Yeah right. You're lying. You couldn't possibly have even half as many as I do.'  
  
'I'm afraid so,' I said, and gestured to the thirteen badges sewn on the side of our backpack.  
  
Mitch narrowed his eyes. 'Oh yeah, but how many pokÃ©mon do you have?'  
  
I took out my pokÃ©dex to check. 'Thirty-seven.'  
  
Mitch laughed. 'Pathetic! Utterly pathetic! I have seventy-two!'  
  
'Big deal,' I shrugged. 'The number of pokÃ©mon you have doesn't mean anything in getting to the pokÃ©mon league, you know.'  
  
'When you're as good a trainer as I am it does,' said Mitch. 'Come on, let's have a battle to see just how good those - thirty-seven - pokÃ©mon are.'  
  
'You're on!' I said, getting up.  
  
We headed outside the PokÃ©Centre for our battle. I hadn't fought Mitch for quite a few months now, and I hoped he hadn't gotten much stronger since then. Oh, but of course I'd be able to beat him anyway!  
  
'Alakazam, I choose you!' said Mitch, throwing a pokÃ©ball.  
  
'This should be easy,' I said. 'Chazz, I choose you!'  
  
'You're still playing with your little fire lizard?' Mitch asked. 'Pfft. I know where the real power lies in pokÃ©mon battles. Alakazam, psychic!'  
  
'Ala!' said his pokÃ©mon. It held out its two spoons, focussed its energy on them, and suddenly blasted psychic power at Chazz, knocking my charizard back.  
  
'Chazz, you can beat that thing,' I said. 'Flamethrower!'  
  
'Charrrrrr!' roared Chazz.  
  
'Flamethrower, what a pathetic excuse for an attack,' said Mitch. 'Alakazam, disable! Let's see how you handle things now!'  
  
'Chazz can still win this,' I said. 'Slash!'  
  
Chazz scraped its sharp claws down Alakazam. It was a critical hit, and took off a great deal of damage.  
  
'Alakazam, psybeam!'  
  
'Chazz, slash!'  
  
'Alakazam, recover!'  
  
'Oh no..' I said. 'Not recover! I hate that move!'  
  
Mitch laughed. 'See what I mean, I know where the real power is. Alakazam is unbeatable!'  
  
'That's what you think,' I said. I had to try another strategy.. someone who hit hard.. 'Chazz, return! Slothie, go!'  
  
'Size doesn't scare me,' said Mitch. 'Alakazam, psychic!'  
  
'Slothie, body slam!' I said. Slothie crushed Alakazam with its huge body. The pokÃ©mon fainted under the pressure!  
  
'What!?' Mitch exclaimed. 'That's impossible! That stupid snorlax is gonna pay!'  
  
This battle wasn't going so badly. I stood back and waited to see which pokÃ©mon Mitch would send out next.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Fourteen, Chapter Ten  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Mitch Orien, Slothie the snorlax, Ripple the squirtle, Tailz the vulpix, Chazz the charizard  
  
'OK Gengar, get in there and show that snorlax who's boss!' said Mitch.  
  
'Careful Janet,' said Sand-Cloud. 'Normal-type moves don't affect ghost pokÃ©mon, remember.'  
  
I nodded. 'Slothie, return!'  
  
Mitch laughed. 'Chickening out so easily?'  
  
I glared at him. 'Don't be so sure. Ripple, go!'  
  
'Ripple!?' Sand-Cloud exclaimed. 'Janet, you only caught it a few days ago! This is a gengar you're battling, it's not gonna be easy!'  
  
'I know, but I think Ripple can handle it,' I said. Sand-Cloud sighed. 'Ripple, bubble!'  
  
Mitch burst out laughing as my squirtle spat out a few little bubbles, not even hitting his gengar. I gulped. So maybe Ripple wasn't as strong as I'd thought..  
  
'Gengar, show it how a real pokÃ©mon battles!' said Mitch. 'Gengar, confuse ray!'  
  
'Gengar!' said his pokÃ©mon. It sent out a ray of psychic energy, and Ripple suddenly looked dizzy.  
  
'Squ.. squirtle..' it said, and fell to the ground. I sighed.  
  
'Ripple return!' I called. I really had to train Ripple against some lower-level pokÃ©mon before I put it up against fully-evolved pokÃ©mon like Gengar.. 'Tailz, I choose you!'  
  
'That pathetic little fox again?' Mitch asked. 'You've got to learn to upgrade to stronger pokÃ©mon, Janet. You haven't even evolved your stupid vulpix yet! You think you're gonna get to the pokÃ©mon league that way?'  
  
'PokÃ©mon don't have to evolve to be strong!' I said. 'We'll show you! Tailz, flamethrower!'  
  
'VulPIX!' said Tailz, breathing fire all over Gengar. The ghost pokÃ©mon seemed to take a great deal of damage from the attack. I smiled. Tailz was strong. Now that it had all six tails, it was able to reach the height of its power.. and the fact that it went in its pokÃ©ball now meant that it could rest easier and more regularly, making it in much better shape for battles.  
  
'Gengar, hypnosis!' said Mitch.  
  
'Tailz, dodge it!' I said. But it was too late; Gengar had already put my little pokÃ©mon into a deep sleep. I sighed. 'Tailz, return. Chazz should still have some energy left, and it can beat Gengar! Go Chazz!'  
  
'What, you don't have any other good pokÃ©mon so you have to keep using this thing when you're in trouble?' Mitch asked. 'Gengar, knock it out with night shade!'  
  
Gengar's attack took off a lot of Chazz's hit points, but my charizard managed to hang in there.  
  
'Chazz, ember!' I said. Chazz spat out a ball of fire, and knocked Gengar out! Finally!  
  
'Gengar return!' called Mitch. 'Don't you worry Janet, I've got plenty more strong pokÃ©mon to knock out that stupid charizard. Jolteon, go!'  
  
'Chazz, you can do it!' I said. 'Slash!'  
  
'Charr!' roared Chazz, scraping its sharp claws down the electric dog's body.  
  
'Jolt!' cried Jolteon, leaping back.  
  
'OK Jolteon, knock it down with thunder!' said Mitch.  
  
'Oh oh,' I breathed. His pokÃ©mon built up electric energy around its spikes, then blasted it at Chazz. My charizard cried out, and fainted to the ground. 'Chazz, return!'  
  
Things really weren't looking good so far. After Jolteon, Mitch would still have three more pokÃ©mon.. I wasn't sure I'd be able to beat him, but I had to at least try.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Fourteen, Chapter Eleven  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Mitch, Knotty the tangela, Catafree the butterfree  
  
'Go Knotty!' I said.  
  
'A tangela!?' Mitch exclaimed. 'How pathetic!'  
  
'Tangelas are not pathetic!' I said angrily.  
  
'Tangela!' agreed Knotty, equally angry.  
  
'We'll see,' smiled Mitch. 'Jolteon, pin missile!'  
  
'Oh no!' I exclaimed, as Jolteon shot out sharp pins, stabbing into Knotty and draining a lot of its energy. 'Knotty, are you OK?'  
  
My tangela pulled itself up, and nodded. 'Gela!'  
  
I smiled. 'OK Knotty, Slam!'  
  
'Tan!' said Knotty, leaping forward and crashing into Jolteon. It dealt a reasonable amount of damage, but not as much as Jolteon could do with its pin missile..  
  
'Pin missile!' said Mitch.  
  
'Jolt!' barked his pokÃ©mon. Knotty fell back, overpowered by the bug- type attack.  
  
'Knotty, return!' I called.  
  
'Told you it was pathetic,' smiled Mitch. I wanted to slap him more than anything right now, but I knew the only way I could triumph was if I won this battle. I only had one chance left.  
  
'Um,' I said. 'Go Catafree?'  
  
Mitch burst out laughing, and I sighed. He knew very well he'd as good as won. His jolteon would knock Catafree down with its electric attacks.  
  
'Jolteon, thundershock!' said Mitch. As I saw my butterfree writhe in pain, I knew that the best way to end this battle wasn't to try and win, because I knew that was pointless. The only fair thing I could do for my pokÃ©mon, was to give up.  
  
'Catafree return!' I called. I looked at Mitch uneasily. I didn't want to say it. 'I.. forfeit.'  
  
'Ha ha ha! See what I mean, you're so pathetic!' said Mitch. 'Oh man, that is so sad! What kind of loser forfeits a match!?'  
  
'One who cares about her pokÃ©mon,' said Sand-Cloud. 'Janet did the right thing, Mitch. Of course you wouldn't understand, because you force your pokÃ©mon to battle even if you know they're going to lose.'  
  
'Yeah right, I never lose,' said Mitch smugly.  
  
'Get over yourself, Mitch,' said Sand-Cloud, shaking her head and turning away from him.  
  
'Oh yeah, and what would you know about pokÃ©mon anyway!?' said Mitch. 'I'm a better trainer than Janet will ever be, and you're not even a trainer so don't tell me what to do about pokÃ©mon!'  
  
'Don't talk to Sand-Cloud like that!' I said angrily.  
  
'Janet, just ignore him,' said Sand-Cloud. 'You're only making it worse by getting angry. Let's get out of here, you've got badges to earn.'  
  
~Janet~  
  
END OF PART FOURTEEN 


	17. Part Fifteen

Part Fifteen, Chapter One  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu  
  
I took us about a month to get to Little Town, but we'd finally made it! As soon as I saw the place, I realised how much it lived up to its name; it was tiny! It came as quite a shock, since the last gym I'd battled in was in Dragon Lake City, the biggest city I'd been to yet! But a gym was a gym, and a badge was a badge, and that was what I was here for.  
  
As usual, we headed to the PokÃ©mon Centre as soon as we got to there. I was all geared up for a gym battle, but I knew that the most important thing was to make sure my pokÃ©mon were ready. After they were healed, I had to choose my team, and it was then that I realised, I didn't even know what type of pokÃ©mon the gym leader used!  
  
'Hey guys,' I said. 'Do either of you know what type of pokÃ©mon gym it is here?'  
  
'Beats me,' shrugged Sand-Cloud.  
  
'Well think about it,' said Gelby. 'You've won thirteen of the fifteen badges, and each badge is for a different type. The only types you haven't got a badge for are fire and bug, so it's either one of them. I'd guess it's bug. Fire pokÃ©mon are really popular, so you'd think the city with the fire gym would be a lot bigger than this one. Plus there's the fact that the other gym is in Charcoal City, which sounds like the name of a fire-type place to me. And there's pictures of caterpies on the walls here, and--'  
  
'OK, I get the idea,' I smiled. 'So bug-types it is. That means I should use fire and flying pokÃ©mon, right?'  
  
'Yep,' said Gelby. 'Or rock, or poison.'  
  
'I wouldn't use poison,' said Sand-Cloud. 'Lots of bug pokÃ©mon are also poison-types, so poison attacks aren't all that effective against them.'  
  
'Oh, OK,' I said. 'Well, I'd better take Chazz, Tailz and Potow. And, um.. Catafree, Evy and Bybee. That'll do.'  
  
'That was quick,' smiled Sand-Cloud. 'Let's get going, then!'  
  
I nodded, and got up. Just as I was leaving the PokÃ©Centre, a familiar face walked in. It was my friend Kew!  
  
'Hi Janet!' she said. 'I haven't seen you for a while! I guess you're here for a gym badge?'  
  
I nodded. 'Yeah. Are you too?'  
  
'Not exactly,' smiled Kew. 'I am visiting the gym though. My brother's the gym leader here.'  
  
'Oh, really!?' I exclaimed. 'I didn't know that! Why didn't you ever tell me your brother was a gym leader?'  
  
'Well, he only became a gym leader a few months ago,' said Kew. 'He's obsessed with bug pokÃ©mon. Weird I know, but then, he is pretty weird. Anyway, he just got through the pokÃ©mon league a few months back, and at just about the same time, the old bug gym leader retired! It was perfect timing, especially since there was no one else to take his place.'  
  
'Wow, that's cool!' I said. 'So come on, show me to the gym.'  
  
'Sure thing,' nodded Kew. We left the PokÃ©mon Centre, following her. The gym was only a block away, and it wasn't very big. I guess it didn't have to be big, since bug pokÃ©mon are only small. Kew opened the doors, and we stepped inside. Her brother, the gym leader, was at the other side of the stadium, looking at a caterpie which seemed to have its antennae broken.  
  
'Hey, you've got another challenger!' called Kew. Her brother turned around to face us, and I nearly fainted in shock. It was.. it was JOSH!  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Fifteen, Chapter Two  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Kew, Josh the pokÃ©mon leader of bug, Evy the vaporeon, Potow the pidgeot, Tailz the vulpix, Catafree the butterfree  
  
'J.. J.. Josh!?' I exclaimed finally.  
  
'Janet!' smiled Josh. 'It's good to see you again!'  
  
'Hang on, let me get this straight,' said Kew. 'You know my brother?'  
  
'Josh is your brother!?' I exclaimed. 'And he's a gym leader!? Woah, I can't believe this, this is too much!'  
  
Kew laughed. 'That's really weird! First I find out you know Luke, and now I find out you know my brother! Weird!'  
  
'I.. I.. Josh was the first trainer I ever battled!' I said. 'I didn't know he was your brother! Wow!'  
  
'That is weird,' said Josh, walking over to us. 'I didn't realise you knew my sister.'  
  
'And.. and.. how long have you been a gym leader, Josh!?' I asked.  
  
'Oh,' smiled Josh. 'About four months or so.'  
  
'That explains why we haven't seen you for a while,' said Sand-Cloud. 'We used to run into you all the time.'  
  
'Yeah,' nodded Josh. 'I would have told you of course, but I never travel around anymore, so I haven't seen you.'  
  
I laughed. 'I just can't believe this, it's so strange! You're Kew's brother, and you're a gym leader!'  
  
Josh smiled. 'Just because you're my friend, and just because you're my sister's friend, doesn't mean I'm gonna go easy on you, you know.'  
  
'Not that it'll make any difference, Janet always beats you,' commented Sand-Cloud.  
  
'Sand-Cloud!' I laughed.  
  
'Hey, I'm a pokÃ©mon master now!' smiled Josh. 'I'm not the same bug catcher you used to know!'  
  
'Whatever,' I said, rolling my eyes.  
  
'Enough talk, let's start the battle,' said Josh. 'You know the rules.'  
  
I nodded, and we took our places. This was certainly going to be an interesting battle.  
  
'Let's start with the basics,' said Josh. 'Butterfree, I choose you!'  
  
'Evy, go!' I said.  
  
'Butterfree, psybeam!'  
  
'Evy, aurora beam!'  
  
Evy's ice-type attack did a lot of damage to the flying bug. I was off to a good start.  
  
'Butterfree, stun spore!' said Josh. His pokÃ©mon fluttered over to my vaporeon and sprinkled powder over it. Evy coughed, and couldn't move.  
  
'Evy, try another aurora beam!' I said.  
  
'Va.. vap..' said Evy weakly. It was fully paralysed.  
  
'Butterfree, psybeam!' said Josh. His pokÃ©mon blasted Evy with psychic energy, doing a lot of damage.  
  
'Evy, aurora beam!' I said. But once again, Evy couldn't move. I decided it was time to recall my pokÃ©mon before it took any more damage. 'Evy, that's enough. Alright Potow, your turn!'  
  
I tossed a pokÃ©ball and my pidgeot appeared. I knew it would put up a good fight.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Fifteen, Chapter Three  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Josh the pokÃ©mon leader of bug, Potow the pidgeot, Tailz the vulpix, Catafree the butterfree  
  
'Alright Potow, your turn!'  
  
'Butterfree, psybeam!' said Josh.  
  
'Potow, wing attack!' I said. Potow slapped Butterfree with its huge wings, the impact knocking the smaller pokÃ©mon to the ground.  
  
'Butterfree, good work, but that's enough!' called Josh, returning his pokÃ©mon to its pokÃ©ball. 'Scyther, your turn!'  
  
'Potow, keep using wing attack,' I said. 'Flying-type moves should be able to beat all his pokÃ©mon.'  
  
Potow nodded, and flew at Josh's pokÃ©mon.  
  
'Scyther, swords dance!' said Josh.  
  
'Scyyyyther!' said his pokÃ©mon, spinning around and gathering its energy.  
  
'Potow, wing attack!' I said.  
  
'Scyther, slash!' said Josh. His scyther stretched out its blades and cut Potow's wings. My pidgeot cried out and fell to the ground. With its wings injured, it couldn't fly, nor could it use wing attack..  
  
'Potow return!' I called. 'Tailz, go!'  
  
'Hey, I thought your vulpix stayed outside its pokÃ©ball!' said Josh.  
  
'It did,' I said. 'But that was only when it was young.. it's older and more experienced now, so don't underestimate it!'  
  
Josh smiled. 'I won't. But I'll also show you that even bugs can defeat fire-types! Scyther, double team!'  
  
Scyther flew in circles around Tailz, creating the illusion that there was more than one of it. My vulpix looked around, confused.  
  
'Vul.. vul..' it said, glancing from scyther to scyther, not sure which was the real one.  
  
'Tailz, use flamethrower!' I said. 'Just trust your instincts!'  
  
'Vul,' nodded Tailz. 'Vuuuull.. PIX!'  
  
It let out a burst of fire, but failed to hit the real scyther.  
  
'Alright Scyther, slash attack!' said Josh. The real scyther flew down at Tailz, slashing it with its scythes.  
  
'Tailz, quick attack!' I said. Tailz leapt at the scyther while it was still close, and pinned it to the ground. It struggled to break free, but Tailz was strong, and wasn't going to let it go without a fight.  
  
'Scyther, slash!' said Josh. Scyther reached up a scythe and scraped Tailz's face.  
  
'Vuuuul!' cried Tailz in pain.  
  
'Tailz, flamethrower now!' I said. Tailz pushed its pain out of its mind and concentrated on its thermic energy. It blasted a beam of fire at Scyther, knocking it out instantly.  
  
'Scyther return!' called Josh. 'Go Venomoth!'  
  
'Tailz, trap it with fire spin!' I said. Tailz breathed out a ring of fire, enclosing Venomoth in the flames. It drained the bug pokÃ©mon's energy for a good few minutes, and then it finally broke free.  
  
'Venomoth, psychic!' said Josh.  
  
'Veeeeno!' said his pokÃ©mon. It built up its strongest psychic energy and hit Tailz with it. My vulpix was getting weak.  
  
'Tailz return!' I called. 'Go Catafree!'  
  
'Cool, a butterfree,' smiled Josh. 'But Venomoth, you can beat it!'  
  
We'd soon see about that.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Fifteen, Chapter Four  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Kew, Josh the pokÃ©mon leader of bug, Catafree the butterfree, Chazz the charizard, Bybee the raticate  
  
'Catafree, psybeam!' I said.  
  
'Freeee!' said my butterfree, shooting a ray of psychic power at the venomoth. The poison pokÃ©mon cried out, hurt badly by the attack.  
  
'Venomoth, poison powder!' said Josh. His pokÃ©mon threw a gust of powder at Catafree, poisoning it. Hopefully, my butterfree would be able to knock out the venomoth before the poison got to it too badly.  
  
'Catafree, psybeam!' I said. Josh's venomoth was strong; it still hadn't fainted from the psychic attacks. But it was getting weak, and it wouldn't be long before it was defeated.  
  
'Venomoth, psychic!' said Josh. Catafree took a lot of damage from the attack, not used to the psychic energy of others. But it wasn't giving up yet.  
  
'Catafree, confusion!' I said. With one last blast of its psychic powers, Catafree knocked out Venomoth.  
  
'Venomoth return!' called Josh. 'Parasect, go!'  
  
'Catafree, psybeam!'  
  
'Parasect, slash!'  
  
'Catafree, psybeam!' I said. Catafree inflicted a lot of damage on Parasect, but the poison had drained most of its energy. 'Catafree return! Go Chazz!'  
  
'Oh no,' sighed Josh. 'Um.. Parasect, try a spore attack!'  
  
Fortunately, Parasect's attack missed.  
  
'Chazz, flamethrower!' I said. My charizard opened its mouth and let out a huge blast of fire, knocking the bug and grass pokÃ©mon out.  
  
'Parasect return!' called Josh. 'Pinsir, your turn!'  
  
'Flamethrower!' I said. Chazz managed to knock off most of Pinsir's hit points with its first hit. Having a strong fire pokÃ©mon was a big advantage in a bug gym!  
  
'Pinsir, slash!' said Josh. His pokÃ©mon scratched Chazz with its sharp claws, but didn't do a great deal of damage.  
  
'Chazz, ember!' I said. Chazz spat a ball of fire at Pinsir. The bug pokÃ©mon managed to just hang in there and get up to keep fighting.  
  
'Slash!' said Josh. In its weakened state, Pinsir didn't do a lot of damage to Chazz, but still managed to knock off a few hit points.  
  
'Chazz, finish it off with an ember!' I said. Pinsir fainted, and I smiled. Why hadn't I just used Chazz from the start?  
  
'Pinsir return!' called Josh. 'Go Beedrill!'  
  
'Chazz, you can beat this one just as easily as you beat the last one,' I said. 'Flamethrower!'  
  
Chazz's attack dealt a lot of damage to Beedrill, but the bug pokÃ©mon wasn't giving up that quickly.  
  
'Beedrill, rage!' said Josh. Beedrill used its anger to make it stronger, charging at Chazz with wrath. My charizard fell back, surprised by the strength of the bug pokÃ©mon.  
  
'Chazz, you can do it!' I said. 'Flamethrower!'  
  
Chazz breathed fire all over Beedrill, causing a lot of damage. But once the attack was over, Beedrill was madder than ever, swooping down on Chazz and attacking with all its might. Chazz cried out, hitting the angry pokÃ©mon away.  
  
'Come on Chazz!' I said. 'You can do this! Ember attack!'  
  
Chazz looked up and spat a ball of fire right at Beedrill. The bug pokÃ©mon was getting weak quickly, but it was getting angrier even quicker. Continuing its rage attack, it knocked my big fire pokÃ©mon to the ground. I gasped.  
  
'Chazz, return!' I said. 'Alright Bybee, it's up to you!'  
  
Fortunately for me, my raticate had all its energy, while Beedrill barely had any. Hopefully, Bybee would knock it out quickly.  
  
'Bybee, hyper fang!' I said. My raticate leaped into the air, slammed into Beedrill and sunk its teeth in. Sure enough, the attack was enough to make the pokÃ©mon faint. I smiled. 'Great work Bybee!'  
  
'Cate,' shrugged Bybee, knowing it hadn't done a great deal in the battle. But I was still proud of it, and ran over and hugged it.  
  
'Well, looks like you beat me as usual,' sighed Josh, and I couldn't help laughing. 'You're gonna be a great pokÃ©mon master some day, Janet. Well, here's your bug badge.'  
  
'Thanks Josh,' I smiled, taking my fourteenth badge happily. 'It was great battling with you.'  
  
'You too,' said Josh.  
  
I nodded. 'So I guess this is it. Now that you're a gym leader, you won't be travelling around anymore, so we probably won't be seeing you for a long time..'  
  
'Yeah,' said Josh. He smiled. 'But I don't think you've seen the last of me yet! Some day I'm gonna set out travelling again. There are loads of pokÃ©mon out there that haven't been discovered, and I'll bet that plenty of them are bug-types!'  
  
I laughed. 'Yeah. Well, until next time Josh.'  
  
Josh nodded. He shook my hand. 'See you later Janet.'  
  
'You too,' I said. Josh turned to Sand-Cloud and Gelby.  
  
'Seeya Sand-Cloud, Gelby,' he said.  
  
'Bye Josh!' they said in unison. I smiled, then turned to Kew.  
  
'Are you staying here, Kew?' I asked. She nodded.  
  
'Yeah, I'm staying for a few weeks,' she said. 'So seeya, guys!'  
  
I nodded. 'Bye everyone!'  
  
We headed out of the gym, taking a new badge with us, and leaving two old friends behind.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Fifteen, Chapter Five  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu  
  
We were out on the road again. It would take a few weeks to get to Charcoal City, but I was already nervous about that final gym battle. Sand- Cloud and Gelby kept telling me that I'd win it easily, now that I'd been a trainer for almost two years. But I couldn't help but be a bit edgy about it.. it was going to be my fifteenth and final gym battle.. after that, I'd go on to the PokÃ©mon League, where my abilities, and my pokÃ©mon's abilities, would be truly put to the test.  
  
While I was thinking about that final badge, I wasn't really paying much attention to what was going on around me. So I wasn't really expecting a human and a pokÃ©mon to appear right in front of me out of the middle of nowhere . . .  
  
'What the!?' I exclaimed, blinking. Had I imagined things, or had that girl just materialised out of thin air?  
  
'Hi!' the girl waved excitedly, a laugh in her voice.  
  
'Um . . .' Sand-Cloud said uncertainly.  
  
'Er . . .' murmured Gelby.  
  
The girl turned to the pokÃ©mon at her side. 'Well done, Kadabra! You're getting pretty good at that Teleport technique!'  
  
'Ohhh, right!' laughed Gelby. 'Teleport, of course!'  
  
'So we weren't just hallucinating!' said Sand-Cloud.  
  
'Um,' I said. 'Teleport?'  
  
Sand-Cloud rolled her eyes and went to open her mouth to say something, but the girl cut her off.  
  
'Yeah!' she said. 'It's a really cool move! Well, it's kind of useless in battle unless you're fighting a really tough wild pokÃ©mon, but it's great outside of battle 'cause you can use it to transport you and your pokÃ©mon around the place!'  
  
'PokÃ©mon can teleport?' I asked. 'Wow, that is cool!'  
  
'Wellll . . . not many pokÃ©mon can,' said the girl. 'Kadabra's one of the few that can. That's what makes it such a great pokÃ©mon!'  
  
'You should get a kadabra, Janet,' said Sand-Cloud. 'Then we won't have to walk so much!'  
  
I laughed, shaking my head.  
  
'Anyway, I haven't introduced myself,' said the girl. 'I'm Cammy!'  
  
'Hi,' I said. 'I'm Janet, and this is Sand-Cloud and Gelby.'  
  
'They call us Team Yellow, creatively enough,' added Sand-Cloud.  
  
'Ha ha, I get it!' said Cammy. ''Cause you two are yellow and you've got yellow hair!'  
  
'Yeah,' said Sand-Cloud. 'Like I said, it's real creative.'  
  
'So are you pokÃ©mon trainers?' Cammy asked.  
  
'She is,' said Sand-Cloud, gesturing to me. 'We just tag along.'  
  
'How'd you like to have a pokÃ©mon battle?' Cammy grinned.  
  
'Sounds good to me,' I said. I was eager to get to that final gym, but at the same time I knew I had to concentrate on training my pokÃ©mon; I'd never win the gym battle if my pokÃ©mon weren't strong enough! And I was interested in seeing how Cammy's kadabra fared in battle; it looked like a pretty strong pokÃ©mon.  
  
'Excellent,' smiled Cammy. 'Let's go.'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Fifteen, Chapter Six  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Cammy, Ripple the squirtle  
  
'All right,' I said, taking out a pokÃ©ball. 'Go, Ripple!'  
  
Ripple was one of my weakest pokÃ©mon, but it was also a water-type, and I knew I'd have to use it at the fire gym, so I had to train it as much as I could before I got there!  
  
'Hmm,' said Cammy. 'OK then, go Slowpoke!'  
  
She tossed a pokÃ©ball and it opened, revealing a short pink pokÃ©mon with a long tail. It yawned, its eyes drooping.  
  
'Sloooooow . . .'  
  
I smiled. As if Ripple couldn't beat that thing - it was barely awake! This would be an easy battle.  
  
'Ripple,' I said. 'Tackle!'  
  
'Squir!' Ripple charged at Slowpoke and knocked it to the ground easily.  
  
'Slowpoke,' said Cammy. 'Use your Disable!'  
  
'Slooow,' Slowpoke narrowed its eyes at Ripple. My squirtle blinked and then cried out, running away from it.  
  
'Ripple, you can do it!' I said. 'Tackle!'  
  
'Sq . . . squirtle?' Ripple tilted its head, confused.  
  
'Um,' I said. 'You know, tackle?'  
  
'Squir,' Ripple shook its head.  
  
'Janet,' said Sand-Cloud. 'Slowpoke just disabled Ripple's Tackle attack! You'll have to try something else.'  
  
'Oh, right,' I said, slapping my forehead. No matter, Ripple could still beat Slowpoke easily! 'Ripple, water gun!'  
  
'Squirtle!' Ripple smiled, realising it knew how to use this attack. It hosed Slowpoke down with its water gun, causing Cammy's pokÃ©mon to cringe in pain.  
  
'OK Slowpoke,' said Cammy. 'Amnesia!'  
  
'Pooooke . . .' said Slowpoke, closing its eyes and concentrating on something. I looked at it curiously. The move didn't seem to do much, whatever it was.  
  
'Ripple,' I said. 'Water gun!'  
  
'Squirrr!' Ripple shot another blast of water at Slowpoke. This time, the attack didn't seem to do as much damage for some reason . . .  
  
'Amnesia!' Cammy repeated.  
  
I still didn't get what that attack was supposed to be doing. Was it one of those moves that took a few turns to take effect, like Solar Beam or something? I shrugged, deciding not to let it worry me. I should just concentrate on what was happening; I'd see the effects of Amnesia when they made themselves clear.  
  
'OK Ripple, another water gun!' I said. The attack seemed to do even less than last time! What was going on here?  
  
'All right Slowpoke,' said Cammy. 'Psychic!'  
  
'Slow!' Slowpoke narrowed its eyes and stared at Ripple, then suddenly blinked, its eyes glinting.  
  
'Squiiiirtle!' cried Ripple, holding its head in pain. It promptly fell to the ground and rolled up in its shell. I stared. How could Slowpoke have beaten Ripple so quickly? Maybe this battle wasn't going to be as easy as I'd thought.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Fifteen, Chapter Seven  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Cammy, Potow the pidgeot, Slothie the snorlax  
  
'OK Potow, I choose you!' I threw my next pokÃ©ball and my pidgeot appeared. 'Sand-attack!'  
  
'Pidgeooo!' said Potow, kicking dust in Slowpoke's eyes. It shut its eyes tightly and coughed.  
  
'Slowpoke,' said Cammy. 'Disable!'  
  
'Oh no,' I moaned. 'OK, try a quick attack!'  
  
Potow charged at Slowpoke and slammed into it, causing a lot of damage.  
  
'Slowpoke,' said Cammy. 'Psychic!'  
  
Potow cried out upon impact of the powerful psychic blast.  
  
'Potow, Wing Attack!'  
  
My pidgeot managed to inflict a fair amount of damage on Slowpoke, but it was nowhere near enough to beat it.  
  
'Slowpoke, Psychic!' Cammy repeated. This time, Slowpoke's attack sent Potow dropping to the ground in defeat.  
  
'Woah,' I breathed. 'Potow, return! Slothie, I choose you!'  
  
'Slowpoke, start off with a Water Gun!' said Cammy. Her pokÃ©mon opened its mouth and shot a beam of water at Slothie, but it hardly weakened it.  
  
'Slothie, Body Slam!' I said.  
  
'Snooor!' Slothie leapt into the air and came crashing down on top of Slowpoke, squashing it beneath its huge weight.  
  
'Slowpoke, Disable!' said Cammy.  
  
I narrowed my eyes. This could get annoying . . .  
  
'OK then Slothie,' I said. 'Headbutt!'  
  
My snorlax lowered its head and rammed into Slowpoke, knocking the little pokÃ©mon into the air. It came crashing down to the ground.  
  
Cammy sighed. 'Slowpoke, return! OK Kadabra, your turn!'  
  
'Kadabra!' said the pokÃ©mon at her side, running in to battle.  
  
'Kadabra, Reflect!' said Cammy. Her pokÃ©mon put its hands out in front of it and created a barrier around itself, increasing its defense. But Slothie was one of my most powerful pokÃ©mon -- it would still be able to do a lot of damage to it!  
  
'Slothie, headbutt!' I said. Slothie slammed its head into Kadabra, dealing a fair amount of damage to the psychic pokÃ©mon.  
  
'Kadabra, Psychic!' said Cammy.  
  
'Kadabra!' said her pokÃ©mon. It held out the spoon in its hand, concentrating all of its energy on it. Then, it psychically lifted Slothie into the air and threw it away. My snorlax landed with a thump that shook the ground. It leapt back up on its feet angrily.  
  
'Snorlax lax!' it said, running at Kadabra.  
  
'Um . . . headbutt!' I said. Slothie lowered its head at the last minute, slamming into Kadabra. The attack was a critical hit, causing Kadabra to lose a great deal of its health points.  
  
'Let's fix things up,' said Cammy. 'Kadabra, Recover!'  
  
'Oh no!' I exclaimed. 'Anything but that move!'  
  
'You should really get a pokÃ©mon that knows Recover,' said Sand-Cloud. 'They're practically unstoppable.'  
  
'Thanks for reminding me,' I muttered. How was Slothie going to get out of this one?  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Fifteen, Chapter Eight  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Cammy, Slothie the snorlax, Seaworth the seel  
  
'Slothie, just keep at it!' I said. 'Headbutt!'  
  
'Snor!' Slothie attacked Kadabra again. It managed to injure it a lot, but after Kadabra had recovered most of its energy, it went nowhere near making it faint.  
  
'Kadabra, psychic!' said Cammy.  
  
Her pokÃ©mon once again tossed Slothie through the air. The snorlax cried out in pain but forced itself to get straight back up and fight.  
  
'OK Slothie, if Kadabra wants to recover then so can you!' I said. 'Rest!'  
  
'Snorlax!' nodded Slothie. It lay down once more, and instantly fell asleep, healing all of its wounds. Now there was just one problem - if it was asleep, how was it going to fight back?  
  
'Kadabra, psychic!' said Cammy.  
  
It was even worse watching Kadabra throw Slothie through the air while it was asleep and defenceless. Before the snorlax could come crashing down to the ground, I held out my pokÃ©ball and recalled it in mid-air.  
  
'Seaworth,' I said. 'I choose you!'  
  
I threw my fourth pokÃ©ball and my seel emerged. Hopefully it would be able to stop Kadabra.  
  
'Kadabra, psychic!' said Cammy. Before Seaworth even had a chance to attack, her pokÃ©mon used its psychic energy to lift it into the air and drop it, causing a lot of damage.  
  
'Seaworth,' I said. 'Ice beam!'  
  
'Seel!' said Seaworth, pulling itself up and blasting Kadabra with ice. I broke into a smile as the ice began to freeze around it, until the psychic pokÃ©mon was frozen solid!  
  
'Aww, no way!' said Cammy.  
  
'That was a great way to beat it,' said Gelby. 'Recover can restore a pokÃ©mon's health, but not any status changes like freezing.'  
  
'You mean Janet actually did something smart for once?' Sand-Cloud smiled.  
  
I rolled my eyes, and decided not to tell them that I'd used ice beam because it was powerful, not because I hoped to freeze Kadabra.  
  
'Kadabra, return!' said Cammy. She shrugged. 'Well, I guess you win.'  
  
'I do?' I asked. 'Don't you have any other pokÃ©mon?'  
  
'None that I really use in battle,' said Cammy.  
  
'Oh, OK,' I said. I felt kind of guilty about winning. I'd used four pokÃ©mon to beat just two of hers.  
  
'Actually, I'm looking for someone to trade with,' said Cammy. 'I keep finding all these abras, but I've got nothing to do with them since I already have a kadabra, and a really cool kadabra too! Um, pun not intended.'  
  
I laughed.  
  
'D'you have anything you want to trade for an abra?' Cammy asked.  
  
'No,' I said. 'I mean, I'd really like an abra, but I don't want to trade any of my pokÃ©mon.'  
  
'That's what just about everyone's said,' sighed Cammy. 'Why can't I just find someone who hates their pokÃ©mon, that way I'd be able to trade easily!'  
  
'Yeah, I guess that's a good point,' I said.  
  
'Can I hang around with you for a while?' Cammy asked. 'Who knows, we might even find someone who'll trade with me.'  
  
'Sure, sounds good to me!' I said.  
  
'Cool!' said Cammy. 'Let's get going.'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Fifteen, Chapter Nine  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Cammy  
  
We checked in at a PokÃ©mon Centre that night, healed our pokÃ©mon and went gratefully to the dormitories, happy to get a free bed for the night. There were only a few other trainers there already, but Cammy began asking them if they wanted to trade for one of her abras. Unfortunately for her, none of them did.  
  
I started wondering whether I should trade one of my pokÃ©mon with her. If I evolved it into a kadabra, it would learn Recover, a really useful move. And Teleport would also be good for travelling around. Sand-Cloud had only been joking when she'd said we should get one so that we wouldn't have to walk so much, but she still had a point.  
  
But I just couldn't bring myself to give up any of my pokÃ©mon. I'd grown attached to all of them, even the ones that I'd never actually used in battle like Sinuos, or Dotwin. I considered going out and catching a pokÃ©mon and then trading it with Cammy, but then realised that I'd probably grow attached to it in the few minutes I had it for. That was just me. Guess I'd have to catch my own abra.  
  
'Janeeeeet!'  
  
I looked up, and saw Luke running into the room excitedly, his jigglypuff clinging onto his backpack.  
  
'Hi Luke!' I smiled. I hadn't expected to see him here!  
  
'Hi!' he said. 'Guess what!?'  
  
'What?' I asked obediently.  
  
'That Josh guy is a gym leader!' said Luke, sounding bewildered.  
  
'I know,' I laughed. 'I just got a badge there today.'  
  
'So did I!' said Luke. 'Wow, we must have just missed each other.'  
  
'Yeah,' I said. 'Did you see Kew there?'  
  
'Yes!' said Luke. 'What was all that about? As if he's her brother!'  
  
I laughed. 'Well apparently he is. So how many badges have you got now?'  
  
'Fourteen,' said Luke. 'I can't believe it, I only need one more before I can go to the PokÃ©mon League!'  
  
'Me too,' I smiled. 'Which badge do you need?'  
  
'The dragon badge,' said Luke. 'You?'  
  
'Fire,' I said.  
  
Luke laughed. 'All I can say is, good luck.'  
  
'Great,' I said with a sigh.  
  
'It was really hard to get that one,' said Luke. 'How about the dragon badge, was that hard?'  
  
'Not as hard as I expected it to be,' I said.  
  
Just then, Cammy came running over to Luke.  
  
'Will YOU trade me something, ANYTHING, for my abra?' she asked desperately.  
  
'Um,' said Luke. 'Do I know you?'  
  
'No,' said Cammy. 'I'm Cammy. I have no idea who you are, but I want to trade with you.'  
  
'Um, I'm Luke,' said Luke. 'What did you say you wanted to trade for?'  
  
'I'll give you an abra for something,' said Cammy. She looked at the little jigglypuff which seemed to be trying to open Luke's backpack. 'Hey, is that your jigglypuff? How about you trade that?'  
  
Luke stared at her in horror. 'NO!'  
  
'Oh, um, sorry,' said Cammy. 'Have you got anything else?'  
  
Luke paused, thinking. Then his eyes lit up. 'Psyduck!'  
  
'Psyduck?' Cammy asked. 'Really? I'd love a psyduck!'  
  
'Are you serious!?' Luke exclaimed. 'Er, I mean, yeah, who wouldn't, they're really good pokÃ©mon.'  
  
'That was convincing,' said Sand-Cloud, rolling her eyes.  
  
'Yeah I know, they are!' said Cammy. 'I haven't got one, but I've heard about them. They've got similar moves to slowpokes, and slowpokes rule!'  
  
'So will you really trade me an abra for my psyduck?' Luke asked.  
  
'Sure!' said Cammy.  
  
'Oh, this is gonna be so cool!' said Luke, excitedly running over to the nearest PC and switching one of his pokÃ©mon for his psyduck. Luke had been waiting to get rid of that psyduck since the day he got it. He'd traded it with our friend Simone for his graveler. His graveler had then evolved (it was one of the pokÃ©mon which evolved when traded) and Luke had become, well, rather annoyed and developed a kind of hatred for Psyduck . . .  
  
'Let's trade!' said Luke excitedly, as he ran back to Cammy with a pokÃ©ball in his hand. Wasn't he even going to say goodbye to Psyduck?  
  
'Here ya go!' said Cammy, handing him her own pokÃ©ball. Luke took it gratefully and handed his pokÃ©ball to Cammy.  
  
'Yeah, I got rid of Psy-- I mean, I got Abra!' said Luke. He opened up the pokÃ©ball and a small, strange-looking psychic pokÃ©mon appeared.  
  
'Aaabra . . .' it said, sounding as if it was half asleep.  
  
Luke raised an eyebrow. 'Eh . . .'  
  
'Wow!' said Cammy excitedly, as she opened the pokÃ©ball which Luke had given her. 'This is the coolest pokÃ©mon!'  
  
'Psy-aiiiee!' said Psyduck, and Cammy laughed.  
  
'Well, anything's gotta be better than that thing,' said Luke, and turned back to his new abra with a smile.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Fifteen, Chapter Ten  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke, Cammy  
  
The next morning, Luke decided that he needed to test out his new abra, so he challenged Cammy to a battle. Sand-Cloud, Gelby and I stood watching as they began the battle outside the PokÃ©Centre.  
  
'Abra!' said Luke excitedly. 'I choose you!'  
  
'Psyduck, I choose you!' said Cammy.  
  
This was going to be interesting . . .  
  
'Psyduck, tail whip!' said Cammy.  
  
'Psy,' said her new pokÃ©mon, waddling over to Abra and turning around, slapping it with its tail.  
  
Luke looked like he was trying not to laugh. 'Tail whip, what an incredible move. OK Abra, um . . .'  
  
'He doesn't even know anything about Abra, does he?' Gelby said, shaking her head.  
  
'I doubt it,' I said.  
  
'I guess I should find out what attacks it knows,' said Luke to himself. He took out his PokÃ©dex and pointed it at his pokÃ©mon.  
  
'Abra, a psychic pokÃ©mon,' it read. 'Using its ability to read minds, it will identify impending danger and teleport to safety.'  
  
'And its attacks are . . .' said Luke, and pressed a button on the PokÃ©dex.  
  
'Abra's attacks,' read the PokÃ©dex. 'Teleport.'  
  
There was silence for a moment.  
  
'And?' Luke asked. 'Teleport and what? Is this thing malfunctioning?'  
  
It was Cammy's turn to laugh. 'There's nothing wrong with your PokÃ©dex. Abra only learns Teleport.'  
  
'What!?' Luke exclaimed. 'This thing only knows Teleport!? What a rort! I can't believe I let you trade me this thing! You cheated me!'  
  
'Well I thought you actually knew something about abras,' said Cammy. 'You were so eager to trade for one I guessed you'd been after one for some time.'  
  
'But . . . but . . . I . . .' Luke was at a loss for words. 'Why do I get all the bad luck in trades??'  
  
'Hey, there's nothing wrong with abras,' said Cammy. 'Evolve them and they learn heaps of good moves, or you could always use TMs. But aren't we meant to be in the middle of a battle here?'  
  
'Maybe if the stupid pokÃ©mon could actually do anything we could have a battle!' said Luke. He moaned.  
  
Cammy sighed angrily. 'Psyduck, just knock it out to put him out of his misery. Scratch!'  
  
'Psy!' said Psyduck. Psyduck scraped its claws over Abra. The smaller psychic pokÃ©mon fell to the ground in pain.  
  
'Now, Confusion!' said Cammy. Psyduck narrowed its eyes and concentrated its psychic energy. It sent a blast of Confusion at Abra, making it cry out and collapse, defeated already.  
  
'What . . . Psyduck can do that . . .?' Luke breathed.  
  
'Luke, did you ever even use Psyduck in battle?' Sand-Cloud asked.  
  
'Er . . . well no,' admitted Luke.  
  
'You fool!' said Sand-Cloud. 'You just traded away a perfectly good pokÃ©mon because you assumed it wouldn't be any good!'  
  
'It's not fair!' moaned Luke. He recalled his abra. 'I'm not battling you anymore, I'm gonna find someone else who doesn't cheat people!'  
  
'Off you go then,' said Cammy.  
  
'I hope you're happy!' said Luke.  
  
'Well yeah, I am,' said Cammy.  
  
'Stupid psyduck,' muttered Luke, and stormed off. I stared after him. He seemed to be getting weirder every time we saw him.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Fifteen, Chapter Eleven  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Cammy, Evy the vaporeon  
  
We were on our way to Charcoal City, where I would battle for my final badge . . . then I'd be on my way to the PokÃ©mon League! I was eager to get to that final gym, but also had to keep in mind that I needed to train my pokÃ©mon as much as possible before I got there. I was particularly concentrating on training Ripple, Seaworth and Evy, since my water-types would be the most useful against the fire pokÃ©mon which the gym leader would use.  
  
We'd only been walking for about five minutes when I saw a pokÃ©mon fly past us at lightning speed, followed by another of the same species. I hadn't been able to get a good look at them, but they were small bird pokÃ©mon . . . so undoubtedly pidgeys or spearows.  
  
'Hey, let's go after them!' I said. The others nodded, and we ran in the direction that the pokÃ©mon had flown in. Pushing through a few bushes and branches, I soon saw that it wasn't two pidgeys or two spearows, but one of each! They had landed in a small clearing in the bushes and were now fighting each other, jabbing with their beaks and scratching with their claws, kicking up dust and slapping with their wings.  
  
'Woah, look at them go!' said Sand-Cloud.  
  
'I wonder what's gotten into them!' I said.  
  
'Same here, but you haven't got a spearow,' said Gelby. 'You should try and catch it, and that'll make them stop fighting.'  
  
'Hey, good idea!' I said with a smile. A spearow would be a great addition to my team; I only had one flying pokÃ©mon! 'Go, Evy! Evy, use ice beam on that spearow!'  
  
'Poreon!' nodded Evy, and shot a beam of ice at the spearow, interrupting the fight. The spearow turned to Evy, weak but angry.  
  
'Speeearow!' it shrieked menacingly.  
  
'PokÃ©ball, go!' I said, throwing a pokÃ©ball at the spearow. Just as it was about to connect, the pidgey swooped in to attack the spearow, accidentally knocking it out of the way and instead getting itself hit by the pokÃ©ball! The little bird pokÃ©mon was sucked inside, and the ball dropped to the ground, closed.  
  
'Um,' said Sand-Cloud. 'Well, you just caught a pidgey.'  
  
'So I see,' I sighed. 'Oh well, we can still get the spearow! PokÃ©ball, go!'  
  
The spearow was looking intently at the pokÃ©ball containing the pidgey, as if wondering where its opponent had disappeared to. My second pokÃ©ball caught it off guard, and it was zapped inside the ball, captured!  
  
'That's better,' I smiled. 'Yeah, I got a spearow!'  
  
'And a pidgey,' added Gelby with a smile.  
  
'I take it this means you've already got a pidgey,' said Cammy.  
  
'Well, a pidgeot, yeah,' I said.  
  
'Then this is the perfect opportunity!' said Cammy. 'How about you trade that pidgey for one of my abras? I could do with a physical fighter like a pidgey.'  
  
'Really?' I asked. 'That'd be cool. I haven't traded any pokÃ©mon before but that's 'cause I've been too attached to them. I only just caught this pidgey, I haven't like, gotten to know it or anything. Sure, I'll trade for your abra!'  
  
I picked up both of my new pokÃ©balls. I named my new spearow "Arrow", and it was transferred to my PC storage box. Turning to Cammy, I held out the pokÃ©ball containing the pidgey. Even though I'd just caught it, I was a little hesitant about trading it. But an abra would be a much more valuable member to my team than a pidgey, so I knew it was the right thing to do.  
  
'Here you go,' smiled Cammy, and taking out one of her pokÃ©balls. We switched, my pidgey for her abra. I smiled as I named my new pokÃ©mon "Pocus", and it also disappeared, being transferred away.  
  
'Wow, not only did I just get a spearow, but an abra too!' I said. 'This is turning out to be better than I thought!'  
  
'Vaporeon!' Evy agreed.  
  
'Well, now that that's over with . . .' said Cammy. 'I should get going. I've only got one abra left but maybe I'll just train it along with my kadabra. You can't ever have too many psychics!'  
  
I laughed. 'Yeah, I guess so.'  
  
'See you later, then!' said Cammy. 'Oh, and good luck for that last gym battle thing!'  
  
'Thanks,' I smiled. 'See ya!'  
  
As Cammy turned and began to head away from us, we once again began to walk, heading to that final gym, and hopefully, the final badge . . .  
  
~Janet~  
  
END OF PART FIFTEEN 


	18. Part Sixteen

Part Sixteen, Chapter One  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu  
  
So here we were. The last city I would have to travel to, the last gym I would have to battle at, the last badge I would have to win.. before I could continue on to the PokÃ©mon League, and put my true abilities to the test. Was I nervous? You bet I was. The amount trainers in the PokÃ©Centre, and the condition of their pokÃ©mon, clearly told me that Aidan wasn't someone easily defeated. But on the other hand, perhaps those other trainers wouldn't already have fourteen badges, wouldn't already have the strong pokÃ©mon I had. But I couldn't take my chances, I had to think hard about my strategies, and I had to win this.  
  
I wasn't expecting to be distracted so quickly, though. I wasn't expecting to be greeted by an old friend, one I owed a lot to..  
  
'Janet!'  
  
I turned towards the direction the voice had come from. I blinked, and muffled a gasp.  
  
'Lucy!' I exclaimed. I just laughed, and shook my head. 'Hi! What are you doing here..?'  
  
The vulpix breeder, the old friend who had given me my own vulpix Tailz, smiled.  
  
'There's a fire pokÃ©mon trainer meeting tomorrow,' she smiled. 'I just had to come to show off my vulpixes! And um, speaking of which..'  
  
I hesitated, then forced a smile. Now that Tailz had grown all six of its tails, had learnt all its moves, and was ready to evolve, would Lucy want it back? I knew it was her right; Tailz was the young of her ninetales, she had raised those ninetales, and Tailz was the result of great breeding. All I had done was train it.. Lucy was still its rightful master.  
  
'I.. I'll get Tailz out for you,' I said, trying to sound enthusiastic. Whether Tailz was Lucy's or mine, I had developed a strong bond with it over my journeys.. it had gotten me through tough situations, earned me plenty of gym badges.. I owed a lot to Tailz. And, whether I would admit it or not, I had done everything I could for that little vulpix. Allowing it to travel outside its pokÃ©ball because it was afraid, letting it battle when it wanted to and back out when it was afraid. Tailz owed a lot to me, too. We were great friends, and I never wanted that friendship to end..  
  
I headed over to the PC and accessed the pokÃ©mon storage system. Depositing Evy, I retrieved my vulpix. "My" vulpix? I was never really Tailz's master.. I had just looked after it..  
  
Lucy stared as I headed back over to her, carrying the shiny red and white ball. 'Tailz.. is in the pokÃ©ball?'  
  
I paused, and nodded. Had Lucy wanted me to keep Tailz out of its pokÃ©ball? Maybe I shouldn't have ever put it in there, whether it had overcome its fear or not.. but then again, maybe I shouldn't have put ANY of my pokÃ©mon in pokÃ©balls. Of course I had to do it; it was the only practical thing for a trainer to do.  
  
'It.. decided it didn't mind pokÃ©balls after all,' I said. 'We got caught out in a storm, and it had no choice but to go inside.. after that, it realised it actually didn't mind being in there after all.'  
  
Lucy smiled. 'That's great. So Tailz has really matured..'  
  
That comment made me smile. More than anything I was hoping that Lucy would be proud of, or at least happy with, my training of Tailz. With my confidence higher, I opened the pokÃ©ball, and my vulpix materialised. It looked around the room, sniffed the air, and suddenly its eyes lit up. It looked up at Lucy, and let out an enthusiastic "Vul!".  
  
'Tailz!' laughed Lucy happily, bending down and pulling Tailz into her arms.  
  
'Vul! Vulpix vul!' yapped Tailz happily, overjoyed to see its old owner again. I watched solemnly, unsure if it was even my place to do or say anything.  
  
Lucy stood up, with her hands around Tailz's body firmly, she lifted the little vulpix into the air. Tailz giggled happily.  
  
Lucy turned to me with a smile. 'One, two, three, four, five, SIX tails.'  
  
I nodded, smiled. 'Yeah. It took a long time, but it finally grew all six.'  
  
'So it's not only matured mentally, but physically,' smiled Lucy. 'Does it know fire spin yet?'  
  
'It sure does,' I smiled. 'Want me to show you?'  
  
'I'd love that,' nodded Lucy.  
  
'Great,' I said. 'Come on, let's head outside.'  
  
Lucy carried Tailz outside, as Sand-Cloud, Gelby and I followed. Lucy placed the little vulpix on the ground and bent down to it.  
  
'OK Tailz, show me this fire spin of yours!' smiled Lucy. Tailz blinked at her.  
  
'Vul..' it said, tilting its head, backing away slightly. I stared. What was going on? It knew how to use fire spin - why wasn't it using it?  
  
'Tailz,' I said. 'What's the matter?'  
  
'Vulpix pix!' said Tailz, looking up at me.  
  
'Come on, show Lucy your fire spin!' I said encouragingly. Tailz nodded, and suddenly turned around and let out a beam of fire, which connected with a street sign and wrapped around it, trapping it. I smiled.  
  
'That's really impressive, Janet,' smiled Lucy. 'You've trained it really well.'  
  
'Oh, well..' I said modestly. 'It was your breeding that made it strong..'  
  
Lucy laughed. 'No, Janet.' She shook her head. 'Didn't you notice how Tailz wouldn't show me its attack until you asked it to? It will only obey your orders, no one else's. That's called respect, Janet, and it's a hard thing to earn.'  
  
I broke into a smile, looking down at my little vulpix who had now finished its fire spin. 'Really?'  
  
'Of course,' said Lucy. 'I'm really proud to see Tailz with such a great trainer.'  
  
'Thanks,' I smiled. I paused. 'So.. I suppose that since Tailz is ready.. you want it back..'  
  
Lucy stared at me, blinked. 'Goodness, Janet! Of course not!'  
  
'What!?' I exclaimed. Lucy laughed.  
  
'That sounded wrong, didn't it?' she smiled. 'I mean, I'd love to have Tailz back, but there's no way in the world I could ever take it. Tailz belongs with you, you raised it from a shy little one-tailed baby into a brave and powerful six-tailed warrior. And it's earned your trust. There's no one I'd rather Tailz be with than you!'  
  
'Oh..' I said, tears in my eyes. 'Thank you so much, Lucy!'  
  
Lucy smiled. 'I was never planning on taking Tailz back, I don't know where you got that idea from! As soon as I met you, and I saw that Tailz felt comfortable with you, I knew you'd be the perfect trainer for it. And just look at it; even if I did want to take it back, there's no way it would come!'  
  
I looked down and realised Tailz was sitting obediently next to my feet. I smiled, overjoyed. Now that I knew Tailz and I were going to stay together, nothing would stop us conquering that fire pokÃ©mon gym!  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Sixteen, Chapter Two  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Lucy the vulpix breeder, Seaworth the seel, Bybee the raticate, Slothie the snorlax  
  
I was all ready for my battle at the fire gym. I had chosen a team of Tailz, Slothie, Seaworth, Evy, Bybee, and Ripple. Even though my little squirtle had hardly any experience, as a water-type it would have at least some advantage over the fire pokÃ©mon the gym leader would use. And if it didn't battle, it was never going to get any experience; now was as good a time as any to get some training done!  
  
Lucy decided to accompany us to the gym. She was eager to see a fire pokÃ©mon battle, especially since I'd be using Tailz at some point. As much as I liked having support, I felt nervous having her watch me in a gym battle. Now I had even more pressure on me to win; I had to show Lucy that I was a good trainer, worthy of training Tailz!  
  
The gym itself was very hot inside.. I had to wonder how long I'd even last in there. More than anything I wanted to take Ripple out and get it to use water gun on the flaming torches that decorated the hallways, but no - I had to show my respect for the gym leader! After all, this was the final gym leader I had to face!  
  
'Ahhh,' said the gym leader as I entered the stadium room. 'Another challenger.'  
  
'Yes,' I nodded. 'My name's Janet, I'm from Team Yellow, and I'm here for the fire badge.'  
  
'I must warn you, this isn't going to be like just any gym battle,' smirked the leader. 'My name is Aidan, and I come from a long line of fire pokÃ©mon masters. The fire badge is one I'll defend no matter what, and it's extremely hard to win. How many badges have you got?'  
  
'Fourteen,' I said smugly. It was about time I got to act smug; gym leaders were famous for their self-aggrandisement, and with fourteen badges, I had every right to show them what I was worth!  
  
'Well well, it seems I've underestimated you,' said Aidan. 'Of course, those other gym leaders are nothing on me! Let's see how well you handle the might of fire pokÃ©mon! Rapidash, go!'  
  
Aidan tossed his first pokÃ©ball into the arena. It opened to reveal the big fire horse I had come to know well from my friend Simone.  
  
'Alright,' I said. 'Seaworth, you can handle it!'  
  
'A seel?' Aidan asked skeptically. 'I'm afraid you've underestimated me. Do you really think a little baby like that pathetic water-type can defeat my supreme fire pokÃ©mon?'  
  
Seaworth narrowed its eyes. 'Seeell..' it growled.  
  
'We'll see,' I said. I nodded to Seaworth. 'Seaworth, headbutt!'  
  
'See what I mean about it being pathetic?' smiled Aidan, patronisingly. 'Seels don't even learn any water-type moves, they're hopeless against fire pokÃ©mon.'  
  
'Seel!' said Seaworth defiantly, sticking its nose in the air and refusing to be hurt by the insult.  
  
'Enough talk,' said Aidan. 'Rapidash, stomp!'  
  
His pokÃ©mon galloped over to Seaworth and slammed its heavy hooves into it, knocking it across the room. Seaworth rolled over and pulled itself up, its water mammal body not entirely equipped for indoor gym battles.  
  
'Alright Seaworth, ice beam!' I said. My seel shot out a beam from the horn on its forehead, hitting Rapidash and dealing a fair amount of damage. But this rapidash was tough, and it wasn't going to lose that easily, especially to a "pathetic" seel.  
  
'Rapidash! Fire-spin now!' ordered Aidan. Rapidash wrapped a ring of fire around my pokÃ©mon, trapping it. Even though the fire-type move wasn't very effective against Seaworth, the sheer power of the high level, evolved pokÃ©mon caused the move to deal a lot of damage. My seel was getting weak already. Things weren't looking as hopeful as I had thought..  
  
'Seaworth, headbutt!' I said. But the net of fire had ensnared it, and no matter how hard it tried, it could not break free in order to attack. I had no choice but to recall it. 'Seaworth, return! OK, go Bybee!'  
  
Throwing my second pokÃ©ball, I wondered if even my strong raticate would have enough power to defeat the rapidash. But there was only one way to find out..  
  
'Alright Bybee, super fang!' I said. Bybee leapt out at the rapidash and sunk its huge teeth into the enemy pokÃ©mon, draining half of its remaining energy in one hit. Super fang was such a good move to start off with!  
  
'That little rat doesn't scare me,' said Aidan. 'Take down now, Rapidash!'  
  
Wow. His rapidash was at an even higher level than I had thought. The attack did a great deal of damage to Bybee, but fortunately, Rapidash was hit with recoil. Still, it had a lot of hit points left, and Bybee and I had to try hard if we were going to knock them all off.  
  
'Bybee, hyper fang!'  
  
'Rrrrrrraticate!' snarled Bybee, trying its other powerful bite attack on the fiery beast. It managed to do a lot of damage, but not quite enough to knock it out.  
  
'Rapidash, ember!' said Aidan. I wondered why he had ordered his pokÃ©mon to use such a weak attack, but after Rapidash blasted its fire at Bybee, I realised. My raticate dropped to the ground, defeated. Poor Bybee had kept fighting even though its hit points were low. It had put on a mask of determination, hidden its weaknesses and forced itself to continue battling. Somehow, Aidan had seen through that.. and I hadn't. Upset, I called my pokÃ©mon back and took out my next pokÃ©ball. I was going to teach that rapidash a lesson..  
  
'Slothie! I choose you!' I threw my next pokÃ©ball, and one of my strongest pokÃ©mon materialised; Slothie the snorlax. The big pokÃ©mon stomped into the centre of the arena, ready for battle as ever. That was one thing I had to be grateful for about my snorlax. Most snorlaxes saw nothing more to life than sleeping and eating, but mine was always eager to battle and get stronger. Today's battle was no exception.  
  
'Rapidash, take down!'  
  
'Slothie, body slam!'  
  
And yes, finally! That was all it took for Aidan's rapidash to finally faint! I wiped the sweat off my forehead and got ready for whatever pokÃ©mon Aidan would send out next..  
  
'Let's see how you handle this,' he said. 'It's a typical choice for fire trainers, but it's no wonder; it's one of the best! Charizard, go!'  
  
A large fire lizard appeared from his pokÃ©ball. This charizard was darker and larger than my own charizard Chazz, but hopefully not any tougher.  
  
'Charizard, flamethrower!' said Aidan. His pokÃ©mon opened its mouth, breathing out a blast of fiery energy. Slothie took the hit well; its defence was good and a hit like that wasn't going to faze it too much.  
  
'Slothie, body slam!' I said. Slothie launched its huge bulk of a body at the charizard, knocking it to the ground and crushing it. The lizard cried out, taking a lot of damage from the attack.  
  
'Charizard, you can beat that fat pokÃ©mon!' said Aidan. 'Flamethrower!'  
  
Slothie narrowed its eyes, not liking being called "fat". It charged at the charizard and attacked, not even waiting for a command from me. It knocked the fire pokÃ©mon to the ground, but didn't do enough damage to knock it out. The charizard still had a lot of fight left, and even though Slothie was strong, I had to wonder whether it was strong enough..  
  
'Slothie!' I yelled, watching as my snorlax haphazardly swiped at the charizard, not using any actual attacks. 'Come on, stop that! Use your body slam attack!'  
  
My snorlax nodded, and launched itself into the air, crashing down on Charizard. The anger that was integrated into the attack caused it to do a lot of damage to the fire pokÃ©mon, but Aidan's charizard as tough, and it wasn't giving up yet.  
  
'Charizard, fire blast!' shouted Aidan. I gasped. I knew very well that fire blast was the most powerful fire-type attack. The charizard opened its mouth and blew out a star-shaped blast of fire. It hit Slothie and wrapped around the big snorlax, burning it all over.  
  
'Snooooor!' Slothie cried out, and collapsed on the ground with a crash. I sighed, called my pokÃ©mon back, and got ready to send out the next one. I wasn't sure if it was a good choice or not, but I had to try it sometime. 'OK Ripple, your turn!'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Sixteen, Chapter Three  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Lucy the vulpix breeder, Aidan the pokÃ©mon leader of fire, Ripple the squirtle, Evy the vaporeon  
  
'OK Ripple, your turn!'  
  
Aidan blinked. 'You're kidding me. A squirtle!? You expect a puny little squirtle to defeat my big charizard!?'  
  
'Janet, what are you doing!' Sand-Cloud shouted. 'Ripple hardly has any experience at all! It can't beat a charizard that strong!'  
  
'I know what I'm doing,' I assured her. I wasn't entirely sure that I did know what I was doing, but I had to at least try. I turned to my squirtle. 'Ripple, water gun!'  
  
Aidan laughed as my squirtle took a deep breath, opened its mouth and spat out a trickle of water; it barely even hit Charizard, let alone did any damage. I sighed. Maybe using Ripple wasn't such a good idea . . .  
  
'Charizard,' said Aidan. 'I hate to do this, but slash it.'  
  
His pokÃ©mon nodded. Taking a few steps toward my squirtle, it bent down and swiped at it with its claws. I couldn't bear to watch, and covered my eyes in horror. But the sound of Ripple crying out in pain didn't come; there was only silence.  
  
'Um, Janet,' I heard Sand-Cloud say. 'You might want to take a look at this.'  
  
I opened my eyes and blinked, looking around. I gasped when I saw that Ripple had somehow leapt onto Charizard's back and evaded the attack. I gave my squirtle a strange look. I hadn't expected that! Obviously, neither had Charizard. It was spinning around in circles trying to find Ripple, unaware that the little pokÃ©mon was sitting comfortably between its wings, trying not to laugh.  
  
Aidan was staring, dumbfounded, at his charizard. I had to laugh.  
  
'Ripple,' I said. 'Full strength water gun!'  
  
'Squirtle,' smiled Ripple. Charizard opened its eyes wide, realising where its opponent was. It didn't have time to react though, as a cascade of water came crushing down on it, knocking it to the ground. Ripple kept spraying its water gun all over the big fire lizard, and finally the charizard cried out, and then was still. It had fainted!  
  
'Woah,' I breathed.  
  
Aidan stared at his charizard for a moment, then narrowed his eyes. 'Charizard, return! I'll make you pay for that! Arcanine, go!'  
  
I knew that Ripple wouldn't be able to repeat its effort again, especially against a fully healed arcanine. So I called it back, and took out my next pokÃ©ball. 'Evy, I choose you!'  
  
'Don't think your water types will beat me this time,' muttered Aidan. 'Arcanine, take down!'  
  
'Arrrr!' growled his huge pokÃ©mon, running at Evy and knocking it to the ground.  
  
'Evy, aurora beam!' I said. Evy blasted a beam of ice up at Arcanine, and froze it solid! I broke into a huge smile. That was easier than I expected! 'Yeah! Go Evy!'  
  
'Don't get too cocky,' said Aidan. I looked over at him. He was smiling, so he obviously had something up his sleeve. Digging into his pocket, he pulled out a small bottle. He stepped into the arena and walked over to his frozen arcanine. He opened the bottle and poured the contents on his pokÃ©mon's frozen body. The ice sizzled and melted, and Arcanine was free! I bit my lip. Ice Heal. This wasn't good.  
  
'Now you can see that your move wasn't as smart as you thought it was,' said Aidan, as he headed back over to his position. 'Not only is Arcanine free, it's angrier than ever.'  
  
Arcanine was growling, and glaring angrily at Evy. My vaporeon backed off slightly, afraid.  
  
'C'mon Evy, you can do it!' I said. 'aurora beam!'  
  
'Poreon!' said Evy, blasting another ray of ice at the arcanine.  
  
'Arcanine, take down!' said Aidan. His pokÃ©mon charged at Evy and tackled it, crushing the vaporeon beneath its huge paws. It cringed slightly as the effort of the attack caused it to take damage, but then stood up proudly, still ready for battle.  
  
Evy was looking weak. With a sigh, I held out my pokÃ©ball. 'Evy, return.'  
  
I bit my lip as I realised I had only Tailz left. As strong as my vulpix was with its six tails and its exceptional experience, I knew it was no match for the huge arcanine. Plus, I had no idea if Aidan had any more pokÃ©mon after Arcanine . . .  
  
'I forfeit,' I said.  
  
A smile curved on Aidan's lips. 'It's about time. I hope you see now that fire pokÃ©mon are not to be meddled with. I'd have a long hard think about your training and battle strategies before facing me again.'  
  
~Janet~  
  
Part Sixteen, Chapter Four  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Lucy the vulpix breeder, Ripple the squirtle  
  
'I'm sorry you didn't get to see Tailz battle,' I said as I put my pokÃ©mon in to be healed. 'I just didn't want to send it out after I'd seen how strong his pokÃ©mon were. I knew it wouldn't be able to beat that arcanine.'  
  
'There's no need to apologise, Janet,' smiled Lucy. 'One of the most important parts of battling is knowing your pokÃ©mon's limits. There's no point in sending a pokÃ©mon out into a battle you know it's going to lose. It's just not fair on the pokÃ©mon.' I nodded. 'And Aidan's pokÃ©mon are some of the strongest fire-types I've seen in a long time. I know none of my pokÃ©mon would be able to beat them.'  
  
'But you're a breeder, not a trainer,' I said. 'You don't raise pokÃ©mon for battles. I've been training some of those pokÃ©mon for nearly two years. Chazz was the first pokÃ©mon I ever got, and I got Bybee not long after. I would have thought that they at least would be able to do much better than they did.'  
  
'As I said, Aidan's tough,' said Lucy. 'But you're right, your pokÃ©mon should be strong enough to beat him. So maybe you should try something else. Take some items in to battle. You thought you'd beaten that arcanine when Evy froze it solid, but Aidan had Ice Heal. If you take some items like that into the battle, you'll be able to handle situations like that, too.'  
  
I nodded. 'That's a good idea. I'd better go down to the PokÃ©Mart and see what I can find.'  
  
After purchasing a few items (some Burn Heals and Super Potions, as well as a couple of Revives), I took my pokÃ©mon out to do some training. Lucy agreed to help me with my training, and took out a team of her best vulpixes and ninetales. I knew that since Lucy didn't train her pokÃ©mon as regularly as most pokÃ©mon trainers did, her pokÃ©mon probably wouldn't be as strong as mine. But any battle was worth the experience, and I was grateful for her offer of training with me.  
  
'Ripple,' I said. 'I choose you!'  
  
I was determined for Ripple to gain some experience, as I knew that in its current state, it was no match for Aidan's pokÃ©mon. Beating his charizard had been more luck than anything, but it had earned the squirtle a fair amount of experience. Hopefully with a few more wins, Ripple would evolve!  
  
'I'd better not be too hard on this one,' said Lucy. 'OK Bruno, I choose you!'  
  
She tossed a pokÃ©ball and a small, four-tailed vulpix appeared. Now that Tailz had all six tails, it was a shock to see a vulpix with less than six. I knew that it wouldn't be anywhere near as strong as Tailz, but hopefully it would be a challenge for Ripple.  
  
'Ripple,' I said. 'Start off with a water gun!'  
  
'Squirtle!' nodded Ripple. It opened its mouth and squirted out a blast of water, soaking the opponent.  
  
'Bruno,' said Lucy. 'Quick attack!'  
  
Her vulpix shook the water off its fur and charged at Ripple, knocking it to the ground.  
  
'Squirtle, squir!' said Ripple, pulling itself back up.  
  
'Ripple, another water gun!' I said.  
  
'Bruno, confuse ray!' said Lucy.  
  
Bruno narrowed its eyes and send out a psychic ray of energy. Ripple grabbed its head and spun around in circles, confused.  
  
'C'mon Ripple, you can do it!' I said. 'Bubble!'  
  
Ripple opened its mouth and spat out bubbles randomly, not sure where Bruno even was. The bubbles turned and smacked straight back into my squirtle, knocking it over.  
  
'Squir,' moaned Ripple.  
  
'Bruno, ember!' said Lucy.  
  
'Vulpix!' said Bruno. It opened its mouth and shot a ball of fire at Ripple. My squirtle took the attack, and was getting very low on HP, but it was determined to win.  
  
'Ripple,' I said. 'Water gun!'  
  
'Squirtle!' said Ripple. It blasted water at Bruno, throwing it backwards. The vulpix landed with a crash on the ground.  
  
'Pix . . .' it moaned, defeated.  
  
'Bruno, return!' called Lucy.  
  
'Squirtle squir!' said Ripple. I looked down at it, and gasped.  
  
'Wow, it's evolving already!' said Sand-Cloud.  
  
'That's amazing,' I said. 'Bruno must be at a higher level than I thought!'  
  
I watched as Ripple grew and turned into . . . a wartortle! With a smile, I picked up my new-look pokÃ©mon and hugged it.  
  
'Wow, congratulations Ripple!' I said.  
  
'Wartortle war,' smiled Ripple.  
  
I smiled. 'That was a really great battle you just fought. Now sit down and get some rest while I keep training, OK?'  
  
I put my new wartortle on the ground. It sat obediently at my feet and watched as I took out my next pokÃ©ball.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Sixteen, Chapter Five  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Lucy the vulpix breeder, Tailz the vulpix  
  
'I think it's about time you got to see it battle,' I said. 'Tailz, go!'  
  
Lucy smiled as my vulpix appeared from its pokÃ©ball, its six tails fanning out behind it.  
  
'All right,' she said. 'How about this? Tailz, how would you like to battle your father?'  
  
I gasped. I'd forgotten that Lucy still owned Tailz's parents! Wow, this certainly would be an interesting battle!  
  
'Cool,' I said. 'Tailz, would you like that?'  
  
Tailz gulped, and then nodded. It looked like it was nervous. 'Vul.'  
  
'All right,' said Lucy. 'Go, Rocky!'  
  
A large ninetales appeared from Lucy's pokÃ©ball. It blinked when it saw Tailz, then sniffed, walking towards my vulpix. Tailz backed away slowly, afraid.  
  
'It's OK, Tailz,' I said reassuringly.  
  
'Rocky,' said Lucy. 'This is Tailz, remember?'  
  
Her ninetales turned to her and nodded slowly.  
  
'I thought you might like to battle it, to see what great fighters you've produced,' smiled Lucy. Rocky nodded, and turned back to Tailz.  
  
'Tailz, don't be nervous, you can do it,' I said. 'Start off with a quick attack!'  
  
'Vul!' nodded Tailz. It charged at its father and slammed into the big ninetales. Rocky leapt back.  
  
'Rocky,' said Lucy. 'Flamethrower!'  
  
'Nine!' said Rocky. It opened its mouth and breathed out a huge burst of flames, engulfing Tailz.  
  
'Vul . . .' cringed Tailz.  
  
'Tailz,' I said. 'Fight back with your own flamethrower!'  
  
Tailz nodded and blasted its own fire beam at Rocky, knocking the ninetales's flamethrower out of the way. Rocky opened its eyes wide as it watched Tailz's flames envelope it, causing a lot of damage.  
  
'Rocky,' said Lucy. 'Confuse ray!'  
  
Rocky narrowed its eyes and concentrated its psychic energy on Tailz, managing to confuse my pokÃ©mon.  
  
'Vul, vul . . .' said Tailz, and started chasing its tails, running around in circles.  
  
'Tailz, fight it!' I said. 'Use your quick attack!'  
  
'Vul . . . pix!' said Tailz. It leapt at Rocky with all its speed, but at the last moment, missed and fell to the ground, only hurting itself in the process.  
  
'Rocky, flamethrower!' said Lucy.  
  
Tailz was engulfed in flames, and fell to the ground weakly. I bit my lip. Tailz had to win, or else I'd feel I wasn't a good enough trainer . . .  
  
'Tailz, you can do it!' I said encouragingly. 'Quick attack!'  
  
Suddenly Tailz gathered all of its energy and sprung off the ground, catching Rocky by surprise. It slammed into the larger pokÃ©mon and managed to knock it to the ground.  
  
'Nine, nine!' cried Rocky, trying to shake Tailz off.  
  
'Tailz, fire spin!' I said.  
  
'Vul!' said Tailz. It opened its mouth and shot out a rope of fire, wrapping around Rocky and constricting it. It couldn't move now, and with the burning flames of the fire spin cutting away its health points every second, there was no way it could win!  
  
'Rocky, return!' called Lucy. I smiled as she held out a pokÃ©ball and recalled her ninetales. Tailz had won! Lucy turned to my vulpix. 'That was very impressive, Tailz. Your father is one of my strongest pokÃ©mon, you should be very proud to have beaten Rocky!'  
  
'Vul,' said Tailz modestly, looking away.  
  
'You did well,' I congratulated my vulpix. 'You deserve a rest. Tailz, return.'  
  
Lucy and I each took out our next pokÃ©balls to continue the battle.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Sixteen, Chapter Six  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Lucy the vulpix breeder, Bybee the raticate, Evy the vaporeon, Slothie the snorlax  
  
'Go, Bybee!'  
  
'Go, Fluffy!'  
  
I had to laugh as Lucy's pokÃ©mon appeared from its pokÃ©ball. Its name certainly suited it; it was the fluffiest vulpix I had ever seen in my life! The dark hair on its head and its tails was especially furry, giving it an unusual - but very cute! - appearance.  
  
'OK Bybee,' I said. 'Start off with super fang!'  
  
'Rrrraticate!' growled Bybee, leaping at Fluffy and knocking it into the ground, digging its huge fangs into it. The vulpix cried out in pain but pulled itself into a standing position, determined to at least put up a fight.  
  
'Fluffy,' said Lucy. 'Fire blast!'  
  
I blinked. I hadn't expected a vulpix - especially that cute little one - to know such a powerful move. I stared on horror as the small pokÃ©mon opened its tiny mouth and spat out a star-shaped inferno which slammed right into Bybee and threw it back at least ten metres.  
  
'Cate . . .' moaned Bybee, struggling to pull itself up. It had lost a lot of energy already; not something I had taken into account.  
  
'Bybee, can you get up?' I asked.  
  
'Cate,' said Bybee weakly, forcing itself onto its feet. It limped back into battle, determined not to give up so soon. I bit my lip. Should I let it keep battling, when it was so hurt? Fluffy was obviously stronger than I had expected.  
  
I decided to take my chances for at least another move. Bybee was a strong pokÃ©mon, and perhaps if it fought hard just a little longer it would be able to defeat Fluffy.  
  
'Bybee,' I said. 'Try a hyper fang.'  
  
'Rat,' nodded Bybee. It gathered its energy and ran at Fluffy. Disastrously, the swift vulpix managed to evade the attack and Bybee found its teeth sinking only into the ground. It pulled itself back up and growled.  
  
'Fluffy, flamethrower!' said Lucy.  
  
'Vul!' said Fluffy, throwing a wave of fire at Bybee.  
  
'Caaate!' squealed my raticate, obviously hurt.  
  
'Bybee, return!' I called, not able to stand seeing my pokÃ©mon get hurt any more. I sighed. That vulpix was tougher than I had expected.  
  
Lucy smiled. 'Don't get too upset, Fluffy is one of my strongest vulpixes.'  
  
I nodded, though her words hadn't really given me any comfort. If Bybee couldn't beat that one little vulpix, how would it stand up against the super-powerful pokÃ©mon of the fire gym leader?  
  
'Evy, your turn!' I said, throwing another pokÃ©ball.  
  
'Fluffy, return,' said Lucy. This battle had turned into a series of one- on-one rounds, and I suppose Lucy didn't want to change the rhythm. 'Go, Joey!'  
  
Another vulpix appeared from her next pokÃ©ball, this one coloured dark red with brown tails.  
  
'Evy,' I said. 'Start off with an aurora beam!'  
  
'Poreon,' nodded Evy, blasting a ray of fire at Joey.  
  
'V . . . vul . . .' said the vulpix, slowly turning into ice. I had to hold back a laugh. Evy certainly was getting good at this "freezing solid" thing! Lucy stared in horror at her vulpix, then sighed and held out a pokÃ©ball.  
  
'Joey return,' she said. 'Well that was a tad easy.'  
  
I smiled. 'Evy, you're getting good with the aurora beam!'  
  
'Vap,' smiled Evy.  
  
'OK, guess it's time for the next one,' said Lucy. 'I choose Rika!'  
  
A tall, thin vulpix with long, golden tails emerged.  
  
'Evy, return,' I said. I wanted Evy to be able to have another battle, since it had fought for such a long time, but it was only fair that I switch it for another pokÃ©mon. 'Slothie, your turn!'  
  
'Don't get scared by its size, Rika,' said Lucy as her vulpix backed away at the sight of my snorlax. 'You can beat it if you concentrate. Confuse ray!'  
  
'Pix . . .' growled Rika, focussing its energy on Slothie.  
  
'Snor!' said Slothie, shaking its head. It seemed to have managed to evade the attack, but I would have to be careful anyway.  
  
'Slothie, body slam!' I said. Slothie leapt into the air and came crashing down on top of Rika, squashing it - and its health points!  
  
'Rika, c'mon, you can do it!' said Lucy. 'Quick attack!'  
  
'Vulpix,' said Rika, suddenly throwing itself at Slothie and slamming into it. The attack did little damage to my big, strong snorlax.  
  
'Headbutt, Slothie!' I said. My pokÃ©mon lowered its head and charged at Rika, knocking it through the air and sending it flying straight into Lucy. I cringed as the trainer was knocked to the ground, her vulpix landing on top of her.  
  
Lucy laughed and pulled herself up, Rika in her arms. 'That's one strong snorlax.'  
  
'Snor,' said Slothie modestly, putting its hand behind its head as if embarrassed.  
  
'Vul . . .' moaned Rika, looking up at its trainer weakly.  
  
'Aww, I think you've had enough, haven't you?' Lucy asked, and her vulpix nodded. The trainer smiled sympathetically and held up her pokÃ©ball, recalling her vulpix.  
  
'Well done Slothie, now return!' I called. I took out my final pokÃ©ball, that containing my seel. I wondered if, like many trainers, Lucy would leave her best pokÃ©mon until last. I hoped that Seaworth would be able to handle it, but only time would tell.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Sixteen, Chapter Seven  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Lucy the vulpix breeder, Seaworth the seel  
  
I tossed my final pokÃ©ball and my seel appeared. It clapped its flippers together excitedly, eager to battle.  
  
'OK, last one,' said Lucy, taking out another pokÃ©ball. 'Bold, I choose you!'  
  
Lucy threw her pokÃ©ball and out came an old but strong looking ninetales. Half of its left ear was missing and it had a scar over its left eye. It had obviously been in a lot of battles over its lifetime. And there was something else strange about it, something that didn't look quite right . . .  
  
'Don't get too confident because Bold doesn't have all his tails,' said Lucy. I blinked and looked closer at the ninetales. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven . . . it had two tails missing! That was what looked so strange about it! 'It lost those two tails in a battle against a zapdos.'  
  
I stared. 'A zapdos!?'  
  
Lucy smiled, and nodded. 'I found it passed out in a mountain range where zapdos are rumoured to live. I ran some tests on it that seemed to show it had been struck by lightning. And that only means one thing.'  
  
'Wow,' I breathed. I looked back down at my seel, who suddenly wasn't looking so excited anymore. I smiled. But Seaworth was tough for a little seel, and I was sure it would at least put up a fight. 'Well, let's get this started!'  
  
'Sounds good to me,' smiled Lucy.  
  
'Seaworth,' I said. 'Start off with a growl!'  
  
'Seeeel . . .' Seaworth narrowed its eyes and snarled at Bold, attempting to lower its attack power.  
  
'Bold,' said Lucy. 'Quick attack!'  
  
Before I even knew what was happening, the ninetales had appeared in front of Seaworth and knocked it down. I stared. That was one fast pokÃ©mon . . .  
  
'Seaworth!' I called to my shocked pokÃ©mon. 'Fire an ice beam!'  
  
'Seel!' nodded Seaworth, before turning to Bold and charging up an ice beam. It threw the frosty flak at the ninetales, knocking off a few hit points but not dealing any great injury to the fire pokÃ©mon.  
  
'Bold,' said Lucy. 'Dig!'  
  
'Nine!' said her pokÃ©mon, suddenly burrowing into the ground and disappearing.  
  
'Seel . . .' Seaworth looked around, trying to listen for the ninetales.  
  
'There's not much you can do now except wait . . .' said Sand-Cloud.  
  
Maybe not. I had an idea. 'Seaworth, charge up an ice beam and when Bold appears, fire it!'  
  
Seaworth nodded and concentrated its icy energy on the attack. Just then, the ground crumbled beneath it and Bold leapt out of the ground, throwing the seel up into the air.  
  
'Seeel!' it cried, then gathered its composure and twisted in the air, aiming its ice beam back down at the ninetales. 'SEEL!'  
  
Seaworth shot the beam of ice down at Bold, taking the ninetales by surprise and managing to deal a lot of damage to the unsuspecting pokÃ©mon.  
  
'Nine!' cried Bold, falling back on impact.  
  
'Bold, don't give up!' said Lucy encouragingly. 'Give it a flamethrower!'  
  
'Nine . . .' growled Bold, before opening its mouth and blasting a flamethrower at Seaworth.  
  
'Seel!' cried Seaworth, taking the hit bravely.  
  
'Seaworth, headbutt!' I said.  
  
Seaworth leapt into the air and propelled itself at Bold, slamming its sharp horn into the ninetales's furry body. It knocked the larger pokÃ©mon to the ground.  
  
'Nine . . .' Bold growled, but it sounded weak.  
  
Lucy sighed. 'We should probably end it there. Bold is tough, but it's also old, and doesn't usually last much longer in battles.'  
  
'Nine,' Bold turned its head defiantly, but made no effort to get back up.  
  
I nodded. 'It fought really well.'  
  
'And so did Seaworth,' said Lucy. 'I've never seen a water-dwelling pokÃ©mon battle so well on land before.'  
  
I smiled. 'Seaworth's one tough seel.'  
  
'Seelll . . .' blushed Seaworth.  
  
'I noticed something about your pokÃ©mon today,' said Lucy after we had taken our pokÃ©mon to the PokÃ©Centre to get healed. 'You used three water- types, but only one of them could actually use water moves.'  
  
I paused, thinking about this. She was right. Even though Evy and Seaworth were water pokÃ©mon, they could only use ice and normal moves. Ripple was my only real fire fighter . . .  
  
'I noticed that too,' said Gelby. 'Maybe you should switch one for a pokÃ©mon that can use water moves, if you want to try and beat Aidan again.'  
  
'Maybe . . .' I said. 'But do I even have any other water pokÃ©mon?'  
  
'That's what I was worried about,' said Gelby. I thought for a moment. There were a lot of pokÃ©mon which I had caught but hardly ever used in battle. Didn't I buy a poliwag about this time two years ago? Of course, Politwirl! I'd bought it from a water pokÃ©mon breeder, who had said its parents were champion fighters. Now was the perfect time to use it!  
  
I headed over to the PC and logged on. There it was, little Politwirl the poliwag. I smiled. It was relatively weak, but against fire types it would be perfect. I decided then and there that I had to use it. Now, of course, I had to decide which pokÃ©mon to switch it for. In the end I decided that, since Bybee was the only one of my pokÃ©mon who had lost against Lucy's, I would switch it for my poliwag.  
  
I knew I was taking a huge risk, but three days later I headed out to the gym. I hadn't trained Politwirl very much during the past few days, but I was confident that, with Ripple and the others, it would be enough to defeat the final gym leader and earn me my fire badge . . . my ticket to the PokÃ©mon League!  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Sixteen, Chapter Eight  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Lucy the vulpix breeder, Aidan the pokÃ©mon leader of fire, Slothie the snorlax  
  
'So, you're back.'  
  
I nodded, determined not to let the gym leader's smugness get to me.  
  
'Things will be different this time,' I said.  
  
'Don't get too cocky, you haven't even seen all my pokÃ©mon yet,' Aidan pointed out. But he hadn't seen all of my pokÃ©mon either. I was confident that Politwirl, and the newly-evolved Ripple, would be the power that let me win this final gym battle. 'But enough stalling, let's get this over with. Rapidash, go!'  
  
This rapidash had put up an amazing fight last time, and I knew that I needed a super-strong pokÃ©mon to take it down. So I took my chances with the one who had defeated it last time.  
  
'Slothie!' I said. 'I choose you!'  
  
'Don't think that snorlax can beat Rapidash this time!' said Aidan. 'Rapidash, take down attack!'  
  
His pokÃ©mon charged at Slothie and knocked it to the ground, crushing it beneath its strong legs. Luckily, Slothie's sheer size meant that the rapidash had a tough time knocking it over. It was hit with a huge amount of recoil, knocking it straight back.  
  
'OK Slothie,' I said. 'Get up and give it a body slam!'  
  
Slothie leapt to its feet, shaking the whole stadium in the process. It ran over to Rapidash and leapt into the air, crashing down on the fiery pokÃ©mon's body. It tackled it to the ground, and Rapidash cried out in pain.  
  
'Rapidash, get that pathetic slob off you and stomp it!' said Aidan. Rapidash threw Slothie off with all its might, standing up and rearing back on its hind legs. It slammed one of its sharp hooves into Slothie, inflicting a great deal of damage.  
  
'Snoor!' cried Slothie.  
  
'Slothie,' I said. 'Try a headbutt!'  
  
'Snor!' nodded Slothie. It lowered its head and charged at Rapidash, hitting the pokÃ©mon with the top of its head and pushing it back. Rapidash just growled back at Slothie, as if not even fazed by the attack.  
  
'Rapidash, ember!' said Aidan. His pokÃ©mon opened its mouth and spat out a ball of fire, striking Slothie and knocking off a great deal of hit points.  
  
'Slothie, body slam!' I said.  
  
'You're so predictable!' said Aidan. 'Dodge it, Rapidash!'  
  
I narrowed my eyes as his swift rapidash leapt out of the way of my sluggish snorlax, completely evading the attack. Slothie came crashing down on the ground, inflicting damage only on itself.  
  
'Snor . . .' it moaned, trying to pull itself up. I couldn't believe how weak it was already. Slothie was one of my top strongest pokÃ©mon! Maybe I shouldn't have been so confident about winning this battle after all . . .  
  
'Rapidash!' said Aidan. 'Let's finish this! Fire spin now!'  
  
A spiral of flames came rushing at Slothie, wrapping around it and trapping it. Each time it tried to attack, the flame net only tightened, causing more and more damage to the snorlax each turn.  
  
'Oh no,' I breathed. If Slothie fainted now, I'd only have five pokÃ©mon left to win this. I'd really hoped Slothie would be able to beat at least Aidan's first pokÃ©mon.  
  
'Snor! Snor!' Slothie was growling angrily, trying to push the flames away from its body. It was getting angrier each time the burning pain got to it . . .  
  
'Janet, what're you doing!?' Sand-Cloud exclaimed. 'Don't just stand there, do something!'  
  
'What can I do?' I asked. 'Slothie can't break out of a fire spin!'  
  
'Then you do something!' said Sand-Cloud. 'You've got those Super Potions, don't you?'  
  
I gasped. That was it! A pokÃ©mon couldn't attack while its opponent was using fire spin, but its trainer could still intervene! And there was no reason why I couldn't use items while Slothie was being fire spun. If I used a Super Potion on it just as the attack was ending, it'd regain its health and be able to fight back as soon as it was released!  
  
I grabbed a Super Potion and ran into the arena. Aidan narrowed his eyes at me as I pulled the cap off the bottle and sprayed the contents on Slothie.  
  
'Here ya go, Slothie,' I smiled.  
  
'Snor!' Slothie grinned back at me.  
  
Just then, the flames dispersed, and Slothie was free again. I hurried back to my position and looked back at the battle.  
  
'Snooor!' Slothie, now almost fully healed, growled at the rapidash angrily, approaching it with a menacing look on its face. Rapidash stepped back slowly.  
  
'Slothie,' I smiled. 'Now try a headbutt!'  
  
'SNORLAX!' roared Slothie. It put all of its anger into the attack and charged at Rapidash, slamming into it with its large head. The rapidash was sent flying right out of the battle area, hitting the stadium wall and sliding down to the ground in a defeated heap. I cringed. That must have hurt . . .  
  
'Wh . . . what . . .' breathed Aidan, shocked. I smiled. That was one down.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Sixteen, Chapter Nine  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Lucy the vulpix breeder, Aidan the pokÃ©mon leader of fire, Slothie the snorlax, Evy the vaporeon  
  
'You may have beaten Rapidash, but you just got lucky,' said Aidan. 'You know you'll never be able to beat Arcanine, even with that snorlax of yours!'  
  
'We'll see,' I said, watching carefully as Aidan tossed another pokÃ©ball and his huge arcanine appeared. He was probably right that Slothie couldn't beat it, but it would at least try . . . and even if it did lose, my next pokÃ©mon would beat it, I was sure.  
  
'Arcanine,' said Aidan. 'Let's get this over with. Toxic!'  
  
I gasped. Toxic!? His pokÃ©mon hadn't used that attack last time; I hadn't expected it. I watched in horror as Arcanine opened its mouth and spat out a purple slimy substance, covering Slothie and then seeping into its body.  
  
'Snor!' said Slothie defiantly, as if not hurt at all by the attack. But I'd seen Toxic used before. It didn't inflict damage at first. It poisoned the opponent, so that it would continually be hurt by the attack until it was healed . . . this was bad. I didn't buy any antidotes because I hadn't expected Aidan to use poison attacks. I really should have come more prepared. There I was with all these excess fire heals that I probably wouldn't even need . . . I sighed. Maybe Slothie would be able to win anyway.  
  
'Slothie, body slam!' I said. Slothie leapt into the air and crashed down on top of Arcanine, squashing it beneath it. Then it cringed, the poison taking effect.  
  
'Arcanine, dig!' said Aidan. His pokÃ©mon buried down, right through the tiles of the stadium. I blinked, and had to wonder how much it must cost Aidan to repair the floor every time his arcanine used Dig . . .  
  
'Slothie, um . . .' I said, realising there was nothing Slothie could do until Arcanine reappeared. 'Well . . .'  
  
All I could do was sigh and watch as the poison continued to drain Slothie's energy.  
  
'Arrrrcanine!' roared a voice suddenly, and Arcanine crashed through the tiles underneath Slothie, throwing my snorlax right into the air.  
  
'Snor!' it cried out, and fall right back down onto the stadium floor with a huge crash that shook the whole building. I bit my lip. Things were looking bad for Slothie . . . I cringed as I saw its face, beginning to look sick from the effects of the poison.  
  
I remembered fighting the poison gym leader, Nic, ages and ages ago. He'd used Toxic against my charizard Chazz, and I'd been shocked to realise that with each turn, Toxic's effects increased. The longer I kept Slothie in this battle, the more energy would be drained and it would have even less hope of winning. With a sigh, I picked up my pokÃ©ball.  
  
'Slothie, r--' I cut myself off, suddenly remembering something. There was one way I could both cancel the effect of the poison, and increase Slothie's energy. I hadn't ever made good use of this attack yet, but it was a snorlax's trademark, and it was about time I learnt to use it! 'Slothie, Rest!!'  
  
'Snor?' Slothie blinked, then smiled. It closed its eyes and went to sleep, right then and there in the middle of the battle. I grinned. When a pokÃ©mon used Rest, its health points were restored to maximum, and any status problems were healed! This was perfect!  
  
'Rest,' said Aidan. 'What a pathetic move. Only losers who don't know how to really battle use Rest. I'll show you why. Arcanine, Fire Blast!'  
  
'Arr!' growled Arcanine. It fired a star-shaped blast of fire at the snoozing snorlax, draining its energy rapidly. I bit my lip. Slothie had to wake up soon, or its Rest would have been pointless. There was no use in regaining full energy if Arcanine knocked it all of before it could use it!  
  
'Fire Blast!' repeated Aidan, and his pokÃ©mon obeyed.  
  
'C'mon Slothie . . .' I breathed. 'Wake up, wake up, wake up!!'  
  
'Fire Blast!'  
  
'Wake up!' I shouted. 'Slothie, you have to wake up!'  
  
'Fire Blast!!'  
  
'WAKE UP!!!'  
  
Slothie opened its eyes, only to see red-hot flames surrounding it. It cried out in pain, then leapt into the air angrily.  
  
'Snorlax snoooor!' it roared.  
  
'Ar?' Arcanine gasped, as Slothie angrily charged at it, jumping high into the air and slamming down on top of it, crushing it beneath its huge body. 'Arr! Arcanine!!'  
  
'Arcanine!' Aidan gasped. 'No way! That's impossible!'  
  
I smiled. When Slothie got angry, it really did know how to knock out its opponents!  
  
'Arcanine return!' said Aidan angrily. 'You'll pay for that. Just because you've beaten two of my pokÃ©mon doesn't mean you're gonna win. You haven't seen anything yet. But let's keep the suspense up. Charizard, your turn!'  
  
'All right Slothie, if you could beat Rapidash and Arcanine you can beat this one too!' I said. 'Body slam!'  
  
'That is so old!' said Aidan. 'Learn a new manoeuver, that body slam is getting repetitive! Charizard, fire blast!'  
  
I gasped as his charizard let out a huge eruption of flames, engulfing Slothie as it was in mid-air using its body slam attack. The snorlax cried out and dropped straight to the ground, defeated. I sighed, and called it back. It deserved a good rest anyway, after it had beaten Aidan's first two pokÃ©mon. But now, I had to concentrate on knocking out this charizard.  
  
'Evy!' I said. 'I choose you!'  
  
'I can beat that vaporeon just as easily as I beat it last time,' said Aidan. 'Charizard, slash!'  
  
'Char!' roared his pokÃ©mon, scraping its sharp claws across Evy's face.  
  
'Don't be too sure,' I said to myself. 'Let's see how charizard handles ice attacks. Evy, aurora beam!'  
  
'Poreon!' said Evy, blasting a beam of ice at charizard. It did a lot of damage to the flying pokÃ©mon, but nothing when Charizard's high hit points were taken into account . . .  
  
'Charizard, earthquake!' said Aidan. Charizard flew into the air a few metres, then dropped to the ground with a crash. Aidan's already half- destroyed stadium floor shook and fell in, knocking Evy to the ground.  
  
'Poreon . . .' it growled, pulling itself up.  
  
'Evy, aurora beam!' I said. Evy fired another aurora beam at Charizard, hitting it and causing some more damage.  
  
'Not good enough I'm afraid,' smiled Aidan. 'Charizard, slash!'  
  
'Charr!' Charizard flew down at Evy and slashed it with its claws, before flying back up to avoid any counter attacks by my vaporeon.  
  
'Evy, aurora beam!'  
  
Evy was getting weak, but the only way I could beat Charizard was with ice attacks, I had to make sure Evy tried as hard as it possibly could!  
  
'Charizard, let's finish this,' said Aidan, sounding bored. 'Earthquake.'  
  
As his pokÃ©mon slammed down to the floor again, the stadium tiles shattered to pieces. Evy was knocked back with the impact, and fell straight into the hole Arcanine had dug. I gasped.  
  
'Evy!' I rushed into the arena and looked down the hole, seeing my vaporeon fainted a few metres below ground. I bit my lip, and held out my pokÃ©ball, returning Evy, and heading back to my position. This charizard was though, but as I'd said, I could only beat it with ice attacks; I had to save the water attacks for whatever Aidan had waiting next. So I took out another pokÃ©ball. 'Seaworth, go!'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Sixteen, Chapter Ten  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Lucy the vulpix breeder, Aidan the pokÃ©mon leader of fire, Seaworth the seel, Tailz the vulpix, Ripple the wartortle  
  
'Seaworth, go!'  
  
I threw my next pokÃ©ball and my little seel emerged. It clapped its flippers together excitedly, ready for battle as ever.  
  
'Pathetic,' said Aidan. 'Let's take this one down quickly, Charizard. Fire Blast!'  
  
'Seel!' Seaworth rolled to the side as the fire came towards it, dodging it entirely. I had to jump out of the way as the misguided fire blast went flying out of the arena and hit the back wall of the stadium. Then I smiled, turning back to Seaworth.  
  
'Great work, Seaworth!' I said. 'Now, ice beam!'  
  
'Seel!' Seaworth blasted ice at the opponent. Charizard fell back with the impact of the ice attack.  
  
'Charizard, beat that weakling!' said Aidan. 'Fire blast!'  
  
This time, Charizard's fie blast managed to connect. It hit my seel with amazing strength, throwing it to the other side of the arena.  
  
'Seaworth, you can do it!' I said. 'Ice beam!'  
  
Seaworth threw itself back up and charged at the charizard as fast as it could with its little flippers. It fired an ice beam from the horn on its head, and hit Charizard, causing the big fire lizard to cry out.  
  
'Charizard, slash!' said Aidan. Charizard scratched its sharp claws across Seaworth.  
  
'Seel!' cried Seaworth, leaping back.  
  
'Seaworth, keep it up!' I said. 'Ice beam!'  
  
'That is getting just as predictable as the body slam!' said Aidan, sounding irritated. 'Fire blast, Charizard!'  
  
'So's the fire blast,' I muttered to myself as his pokÃ©mon let out a huge burst of fire. It hit Seaworth and sent my seel crashing to the ground.  
  
'Seel . . .' it moaned.  
  
'Seaworth, are you OK?' I called.  
  
'S . . . seel!' it said, pulling itself back up again. I smiled.  
  
'OK, try another ice beam!' I said.  
  
'SEEL!' shouted Seaworth, putting all its energy into an ice beam and bursting the icy energy out at Charizard. The ice wrapped around the pokÃ©mon and engulfed it, slowly turning solid and freezing the charizard still.  
  
'Hmph,' said Aidan. 'You're lucky I used my last ice heal, or that seel would be fainted right now. Charizard, return.'  
  
I smiled. Seaworth had done it!  
  
'Great work Seaworth!' I said.  
  
'Seel!' Seaworth sighed and fell to the ground, exhausted.  
  
'You did really well,' I said. 'Time for a rest. Seaworth, return!'  
  
I thought through my pokÃ©mon, unsure of what Aidan would send out next and not knowing which pokÃ©mon would be the best counter for it. With a shrug, I decided to take my chances and save my water pokÃ©mon until last.  
  
'Tailz,' I said. 'Your turn!'  
  
I threw a pokÃ©ball and my vulpix appeared.  
  
'Yay!' I heard Lucy cheer from the sidelines. 'Go Tailz! You can do it!'  
  
'Vul,' said Tailz, blushing.  
  
'Don't count on it,' said Aidan. 'That pathetic little fire fox is no match for mine! Time to show you the real power of fire pokÃ©mon! Go, Flareon!'  
  
I blinked. Flareon!? I hadn't expected that to be his next pokÃ©mon. I was expecting something really scary, like a moltres or something! But I reminded myself not to get too confident; I had no idea what this flareon could do yet.  
  
'Tailz, be careful,' I said. 'This one could be stronger than you think.'  
  
Aidan laughed. 'Much, much, much stronger. You'll see.'  
  
'Tailz, start off with a quick attack!' I said.  
  
'Vulpix!' Tailz ran towards Flareon at lightning speed and knocked it to the ground.  
  
'Flareon,' said Aidan. 'Bite!'  
  
'Flaaar!' growled Flareon, leaping into the air and crashing down on Tailz, sinking its sharp teeth into my vulpix's back.  
  
'Vuuul!' Tailz cried out in pain.  
  
'Tailz, flamethrower!' I said. Tailz turned its head and threw a beam of fire at Flareon. The fire pokÃ©mon just glared at Tailz through the fire.  
  
'Flareon, bite it again!' said Aidan.  
  
'Flar!' nodded Flareon, and clamped its teeth down on Tailz once more.  
  
'Vuuulpix!' Tailz cried, and suddenly fell to the ground. I stared. No way! How could that flareon be so strong!?  
  
'Tailz, return!' I called. I swallowed. I had to win this battle, I just had to! I'd come too far on my pokÃ©mon journey to lose! 'Ripple, go!'  
  
'Janet, what are you doing?' Gelby called. 'Ripple's your best chance in this battle, you should keep it until last!'  
  
I shook my head. 'I need Ripple to beat this flareon. It's the only one who can now!'  
  
'So your squirtle evolved, big deal,' said Aidan. 'A wartortle's still not strong enough to beat my flareon! Let's show it, Flareon! Double team!'  
  
'Flar!' Flareon ran in circles around Ripple, so fast that neither my wartortle or I could see where it was.  
  
'Ripple,' I said. 'Do your best. Try a water gun!'  
  
'Wartortle!' said Ripple, opening its mouth and squirting a water gun out. Amazingly, it managed to hit the flareon, pushing it back and stopping its frantic run. It shook itself off and narrowed its eyes at Ripple.  
  
'Flareon, double team!' said Aidan. His pokÃ©mon recommenced its circling of Ripple, this time even faster. Ripple looked around, confused.  
  
'Wartortle, war . . .' it looked around in every direction, but couldn't figure out where Flareon really was.  
  
'Water gun, Ripple!' I said.  
  
'War!' said Ripple, and shot out a water gun. It didn't connect with Flareon this time, instead hitting only the wall of the stadium.  
  
'Now Flareon, hyper beam!' said Aidan. I gasped. Hyper beam!?  
  
'FLAREON!' roared his pokÃ©mon. It suddenly reappeared behind Ripple, a beam of energy forming in its mouth.  
  
'Ripple, look out!' I cried, but it was too late. Flareon fired the beam, connecting straight with my wartortle and sending it crashing across the mostly destroyed stadium. It hit a piece of tiling which had come up during the battle with Arcanine, and fell to the ground. Had it been defeated already!?  
  
'Ripple!' I said. 'Ripple, can you get up?'  
  
'Of course it can't,' said Aidan. 'No pokÃ©mon can withstand Flareon's hyper beam!'  
  
'War . . .' I saw Ripple pulling itself to its feet shakily. Aidan growled.  
  
'Ripple, you're too weak,' I said with a sigh. 'You'd better return.' I took out my pokÃ©ball.  
  
'Wartortle war!' Ripple shook its head, took a deep breath, and fired a huge water gun at Flareon. It hit it perfectly, and the shock factor sent the flareon flying back. It performed a somersault in the middle of the air and landed on the ground triumphantly, as if unaffected by the attack. Then Ripple spun around dizzily and fell to the floor. 'Tortle.'  
  
'Oh Ripple,' I sighed. 'You shouldn't have done that.' I held out my pokÃ©ball and returned it. I only had once more chance now. Politwirl.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Sixteen, Chapter Eleven  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Lucy the vulpix breeder, Aidan the pokÃ©mon leader of fire, Politwirl the poliwag  
  
'It's risky, but it's the only thing I have left,' I murmured to myself. 'So this is it. Go for it, Politwirl!'  
  
I threw my final pokÃ©ball and with a flash of light, my poliwag appeared. Aidan looked at it for a moment, then burst out laughing.  
  
'A poliwag!' he said. 'You must be kidding! OK Flareon, you might as well go easy on it. Use flamethrower!'  
  
'Flar!' said Flareon. It breathed a ray of fire at my poliwag.  
  
'Poliii . . .' Politwirl closed its eyes and took the hit, ignoring the pain.  
  
'Politwirl!' I said. 'Hypnosis!'  
  
'Poli!' nodded Politwirl. It plodded over to Flareon and began to spin the spiral on its stomach. The fire pokÃ©mon looked at it, blinked, and began to look dizzy.  
  
'Flareon, don't look at it!' said Aidan. 'Double team!'  
  
Flareon shook its head, forcing itself to concentrate. It began to dart around in circles around Politwirl. I narrowed my eyes, but couldn't manage to trace it as it sped faster and faster.  
  
'Politwirl!' I said. 'Try another hypnosis!'  
  
Politwirl began spinning its spiral again. At first, nothing seemed to happen, but then Flareon suddenly stopped right in front of it, its eyes transfixed on my poliwag's spiral. Its eyes began to spin around.  
  
'Flareon, no!' yelled Aidan. 'Don't look at it!'  
  
'Keep it up, Politwirl!' I said.  
  
'Fl . . . flareon . . .' Flareon's eyes dropped and finally closed, and it fell to the ground asleep. Aidan narrowed his eyes, then dug into his pocket and pulled out a bottle. Oh no, what item was he using now!? He hurried into the arena and opened the bottle, sprinkling a fine powder over his flareon. The pokÃ©mon sniffed, then leapt up.  
  
'What on earth was that!?' I exclaimed.  
  
'Awakening,' smiled Aidan. 'You should try it some time, it's useful when fighting pesky hypnosis pokÃ©mon!'  
  
'Hmm,' I said. I'd have to try a different strategy. 'OK Politwirl, water gun!'  
  
'Poli!' said Politwirl, squirting a beam of water at flareon. It managed to hit it and drain some of the flareon's energy, but nowhere near enough to knock it out.  
  
'Flareon, hyper beam!' said Aidan.  
  
I bit my lip. This was going to be bad.  
  
'FLAR!' roared Flareon, blasting all of its energy at Politwirl.  
  
'Poliiii!' cried Politwirl as it went flying across the stadium, straight towards me.  
  
'Woah!' I said, and held my arms out to catch it. It landed right there in my arms, and I pulled it towards me comfortingly. Up close, I could see the full extent of its battle wounds. Already it was covered in burn marks from Flareon's flamethrower, and was looking dizzy from the intensity of the hyper beam. I sighed. There was no way I could win now.  
  
'Poli,' Politwirl rolled its eyes dizzily. And then, all of a sudden, its body began to glow. I blinked once, twice, but no, it was definitely happening!  
  
Politwirl's small body began to grow. Its tail disappeared, and instead its legs grew longer, arms sprouted from its body, and overall it gained a much more battle-worthy shape. It had evolved into . . . a poliwhirl!  
  
'Poliwhirl,' smiled the pokÃ©mon in my arms. I broke into a grin.  
  
'Wow Politwirl, this is so great!' I said. I put it down on the ground -- now that it had evolved, it was much heavier than before! 'I know you can win now, Politwirl! You can do it!'  
  
'Poliwhirl,' nodded my pokÃ©mon, and charged back into the arena.  
  
'This changes nothing,' said Aidan. 'Flareon, hyper beam!'  
  
It seemed that in the time it had taken for Politwirl to evolve, Flareon had managed to recharge its energy from the last hyper beam. Now it was ready to try again.  
  
'Politwirl!' I said. 'Try and intersect it with a water gun!'  
  
'Poli,' said Politwirl, blasting a super-powerful torrent of water at the fire pokÃ©mon. It connected with Flareon's hyper beam, the two beams meeting half-way. Politwirl continued to spray water, trying to push the hyper beam back. Flareon built up its energy, pushing the hyper beam towards Politwirl. It was obvious that Flareon's attack was stronger.  
  
'Politwirl!' I said. 'Don't worry about the water gun, just jump out of the way!'  
  
'Whirl!' nodded Politwirl. It deceased its water gun and leapt to the side, completely dodging the hyper beam as Flareon's blast overpowered its own. Flareon puffed from having used so much energy, then turned and growled at Politwirl.  
  
'OK Politwirl,' I said. 'Doubleslap!'  
  
'Poliwhirl!' Politwirl ran over to Flareon and grabbed it in its newly formed hands, slapping it from either side.  
  
'Flar! Flar!' cried Flareon.  
  
'Poliwhirl PoliWHIRL!' roared Politwirl, continuing to hit Flareon and finally throwing it to the ground.  
  
'Flar . . . e . . . on . . .' moaned Flareon, and collapsed.  
  
'What!?' Aidan exclaimed. 'No! Flareon!' He ran into the arena and bent over his pokÃ©mon. 'Flareon, are you all right?'  
  
'Reon . . .' whimpered Flareon. Aidan sighed.  
  
'Flareon, return,' he said, holding out his pokÃ©ball. He stood up, looking over at me. 'Well, I suppose you're not that bad after all. Looks like you've won.'  
  
I broke into a huge smile. So he only had four pokÃ©mon! I'd won! I'd won the match against the final gym leader!! I couldn't believe it.  
  
'Well,' said Aidan, walking over to me and holding out his hand. 'I think you've earned this. Not many trainers manage to beat me. You've done really well.'  
  
'Thanks,' I smiled, tears in my eyes. I was shaking as I extended my hand and took the fire badge. There it was, it was mine. The final badge! After all this time, I'd finally collected fifteen badges! And now, now there was only one more thing I had to do, one more place I had to go . . .  
  
The PokÃ©mon League.  
  
~Janet~  
  
END OF PART SIXTEEN 


	19. Part Seventeen

Part Seventeen, Chapter One  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Chazz the charizard, Potow the pidgeot, Pikapi the raichu, Weedie the beedrill, Bybee the raticate, Catafree the butterfree, Raus the venusaur, Dougg the diglett, Nido the nidoran male, Tailz the vulpix, Politwirl the poliwhirl, Dotwin the doduo, Horshu the magnemite, Monyet the mankey, Lucky the chansey, Torro the tauros, Seaworth the seel, Evy the vaporeon, Palido the venonat, Sinuos the ekans, Slothie the snorlax, Knotty the tangela, Snarlithe the growlithe, Fern the oddish, Ripple the wartortle, Arrow the spearow, Pocus the abra  
  
I had fifteen badges. After being a pokÃ©mon trainer for almost three years, I had finally earned all fifteen of the required badges (one for each type) to make myself eligible for the PokÃ©mon League. That was where I was headed now - to the PokÃ©mon League building where I would compete for my Master Badge. It seemed almost like a dream, that I couldn't really be on my way to completing my goal. I knew that the battle for the Master Badge would be tough, much tougher than that battle against Aidan, the fire- type leader, for my fifteenth badge. But at least I was on my way now.  
  
The hardest part wasn't necessarily going to be the battle, but preparing for the battle. I had no idea what pokÃ©mon the Master would be using. With every gym I had competed in, it was obvious which type the gym leader would be using - that particular type was the purpose of the gym. But for the Master Badge . . . no one had a clue about which pokÃ©mon I would battle against. Perhaps I should have asked some of the gym leaders. The more friendly ones, like Murray or James or of course Josh. But in a way, that would just be cheating. I wanted to win this battle by myself, to have the knowledge that I really deserved to be a pokÃ©mon master.  
  
So I was going to have to choose a well-balanced team. I wasn't sure how I'd go about doing that. So to start off with, I went to a PokÃ©mon Centre and asked special permission to release every one of my pokÃ©mon. When I explained that it was for training for the PokÃ©mon League, Nurse Joy was more than happy to let my exceed the standard six.  
  
And that's how my friends and I happened to be standing outside the PokÃ©mon Centre with a group of twenty-seven pokÃ©mon standing in front of us.  
  
There they were: Chazz, Potow, Pikapi, Weedie, Bybee, Catafree, Raus, Dougg, Nido, Tailz, Politwirl, Dotwin, Horshu, Monyet, Lucky, Torro, Seaworth, Evy, Palido, Sinuos, Slothie, Knotty, Snarlithe, Fern, Ripple, Arrow and Pocus. I looked around at them. It was so strange seeing them all in one big group. At most, I saw six of them together, and usually only two or three.  
  
'OK guys,' I said. 'I suppose you know what lies ahead for us now. We're on our way to the PokÃ©mon League! Now unfortunately, only six of you are gonna be able to fight in the big battle. And I don't want you to get upset if I don't choose you. You're all just as valuable as each other to me, and I couldn't have come this far without any one of you. But sadly, I have to choose a team of just six. So it's going to be a case of which combination best covers all the possible pokÃ©mon that the Master will use.'  
  
'That's all well and good Janet,' said Sand-Cloud. 'But how are you planning on actually choosing your team?'  
  
'You know,' I said. 'I've got no idea.'  
  
Sand-Cloud and Gelby sighed, and I scratched my head. I suppose I would have to figure that out some day.  
  
'Well,' I said. 'How about we start heading towards the PokÃ©mon League. We'll battle as much as we can along the way, and I dunno, I guess I'll figure it out as we go along!'  
  
'Yeah, but Janet,' said Gelby. 'You do realise how hard it is to get to the PokÃ©mon League, right?'  
  
I blinked at her. 'What do you mean, hard?'  
  
'Well,' Sand-Cloud opened up our backpack and took out a map. 'We've got to go through a forest and through all these mountains ranges. That's where the PokÃ©mon League is.'  
  
She handed me the map, pointing to a photo of the PokÃ©mon League building. I stared. Woah. It was at the summit of a huge mountain, with three smaller mountains surrounding it. One had a strange dark building on the top and powerlines leading down from it, another was covered in snow, and the third was a volcano! Wow, that was some mountain region! And floating above it was a strange purple cloud which made the whole place look really sinister. I thought the PokÃ©mon League was supposed to be a good place!  
  
'That does look pretty tough to get to . . .' I said, biting my lip. 'But hey, we've come this far, we can't stop now!' I looked over at my pokÃ©mon. 'So I say we get going. What do you guys say?'  
  
There was a chorus of pokÃ©mon cries as a response, and I smiled.  
  
Five hours later, we were trekking through a dark forest. The vegetation was extremely thick, as if humans rarely came here. It was pretty tricky to navigate, but I was glad that it at least didn't have the same ghostly reputation as the Mirror Forest back in the Reflexion Kingdom! Hopefully we'd find our way through this one soon enough.  
  
'Hey Chazz,' I said, looking back at my charizard. 'How about you go in front? That way, we can all follow the light of your tail. I don't want anyone to get lost in here.'  
  
Chazz nodded, and pushed through the crowd of pokÃ©mon to the front. Raus narrowed its eyes at Chazz, and bounded its huge body over to it. It bumped into Chazz from the side, pushing it out of the way and getting in front.  
  
'Charr,' growled Chazz, leaning its long neck down and glaring at the venusaur.  
  
'Saur!' said Raus angrily, narrowing its eyes.  
  
'Hey!' I said. 'What're you two fighting about? Be friendly or I'll put you back in your pokÃ©balls!'  
  
Raus turned and glared at me, and I took a step back, shocked. Raus turned back to Chazz and growled.  
  
'Charrrr,' Chazz growled back. I saw flames start to appear at the edges of its mouth.  
  
'Hey Chazz, don't!' I said, but it was too late. My charizard opened its mouth and breathed out a flamethrower, scorching the flower on Raus's back.  
  
'VenuSAUR!' roared Raus, sending a gust of razor leaves at Chazz. My charizard just laughed and puffed an ember at Raus, incinerating the leaves. 'Venu venu saur!!'  
  
Raus leapt into the air and tackled Chazz to the ground. The charizard angrily let out a fire spin, wrapping Raus in its flames and refusing to let go.  
  
'Saur saur!' said Raus angrily. It tried to break free of the net of fire but only ended up hurting itself more.  
  
'Chazz!' I said. 'Stop that!'  
  
'Char!' Chazz stopped the flames that were spilling out of its mouth and turned away from Raus defiantly.  
  
'Venu!' said Raus. It shot out a gust of razor leaves, cutting into Chazz's back.  
  
'Charrr!' Chazz roared, turning back around angrily.  
  
'Hey you two!' I said. 'Stop it!'  
  
Chazz just glared at Raus, who stuck its nose in the air and plodded on. I walked over to Chazz and put a hand on its shoulder.  
  
'Maybe we'd better let Raus walk in front,' I said. 'You know it can't cope with being second best.'  
  
Chazz turned and narrowed its eyes at Raus.  
  
'Chazz,' I said warningly. 'Just leave it alone. How about you fly, that way you can lead everyone but Raus can't push you out of the way.'  
  
Chazz smiled, then nodded and leapt into the air. I sighed. Maybe this wasn't going to be as easy as I thought.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Seventeen, Chapter Two  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Chazz the charizard, Raus the venusaur  
  
We had decided to settle down for the night. In order to keep Chazz and Raus happy and hopefully get them to be friendly to each other, I asked Raus to help me collect some firewood, which Chazz would then light for our campfire.  
  
I left Sand-Cloud and Gelby to look after the other pokÃ©mon and headed into the woods with Raus. It was dark, and I probably should have brought Chazz after all to lead the way, but we'd manage.  
  
'You know Raus,' I said, as we strolled along. 'You don't have to prove anything to me or to Chazz. You're one of my strongest pokÃ©mon, and we all know that.'  
  
'Saur,' said Raus simply.  
  
'Chazz and I probably seem closer 'cause it was the first pokÃ©mon I caught,' I said. 'But I don't like Chazz any more than I like you, I like all of you equally.'  
  
'Saur,' repeated Raus defiantly.  
  
I sighed, shaking my head. 'Raus, what am I going to do with you?'  
  
Raus was silent, and I decided it was probably best not to try and reason with it.  
  
We had been walking for another two minutes or so when Raus spoke again; 'Venusaur!'  
  
It hurried its large body over to where a pile of sticks was laid out on the ground. I blinked. Well, that was easy!  
  
'Saur!' said Raus proudly. I smiled.  
  
'Well done Raus,' I said. I paused, looking at the pile of sticks. 'Except it looks like these are already set up as a campfire. Someone else is probably using it.'  
  
'Venusaur,' shrugged Raus, and I laughed.  
  
'Well we can't just take them!' I said. I paused. 'Then again, there's no one around here, so maybe they left. These were probably left over from when they had the campfire. I guess we might as well take them then . . .'  
  
'Venu,' nodded Raus. It extended its vines and wrapped them around the pile of wood, lifting it into the air.  
  
'OK, let's go find the others,' I said. We began heading back.  
  
Suddenly there was a rustling in the bushes, and out of nowhere leapt a fully grown ninetales, baring its teeth and growling at Raus angrily. I gulped and took a step back. It looked pretty tough. But why would a wild pokÃ©mon just attack us for no reason!?  
  
I looked down at Raus. 'We must have trespassed on its territory or something . . .'  
  
'Saur,' said Raus, eyes fixed on the ninetales. It moved its vines over to me, as if handing the pile of wood to me. I took it, realising Raus was going to battle and that the wood would only get in the way.  
  
'OK Raus,' I said. 'Start off with Leech Seed, that way we can keep draining its power.'  
  
Raus nodded and shot a seed out at the ninetales. The agile pokÃ©mon dodged it completely and retaliated with a Flamethrower. Raus cringed but took the hit, ignoring the pain and concentrating its energy.  
  
'Let's just try and get this over with, then,' I said. 'Solarbeam!'  
  
'Venusaur!' Raus shook its head. I blinked. Why wouldn't it use Solarbeam? It was its most powerful attack! Even against a fire pokÃ©mon like Ninetales, it would do a lot of damage! Raus gestured to the sky, and I suddenly realised how stupid my command had been. We were in a closed canopy forest, there was no way Raus could find enough light to use Solarbeam! Why hadn't I thought about this earlier? I was an experienced pokÃ©mon trainer with fifteen badges, on my way to the PokÃ©mon League. But there was no way I'd ever become a pokÃ©mon master if I hadn't noticed something as simple as that! What was the point in teamwork if the pokÃ©mon noticed things before the trainer?  
  
My thoughts were cut off as Ninetales let out another Flamethrower. Raus tried to dodge the attack but its bulky body prevented it from doing so. It was getting weaker rapidly.  
  
'Raus,' I said. 'Just try a tackle.'  
  
Raus nodded and ran at the ninetales, knocking it to the ground. The fire pokÃ©mon opened its mouth and shot out a thin beam of fire, manoeuvring it around Raus and trapping it inside. Fire spin. Great, now Raus wouldn't even be able to fight back!  
  
'Raus, try and break free!' I said desperately, but it was no use.  
  
'Nine!' roared the ninetales, wrapping the Fire Spin around Raus even tighter.  
  
'Saur!' Raus cried out in pain.  
  
I had to do something to help it! Raus didn't deserve to be attacked for no reason by some wild ninetales! I looked around desperately, but what could a trainer do against such a strong wild pokÃ©mon?  
  
~Janet~  
  
Part Seventeen, Chapter Three  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Raus the venusaur, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Ripple the wartortle, Politwirl the poliwhirl, Evy the vaporeon  
  
I took one of the pieces of wood in one hand and held it up.  
  
'Leave it alone!' I yelled, and threw the piece of wood at the ninetales. I didn't want to hurt it, I really didn't, but it was all I could do to get Raus free.  
  
'Nine!' Ninetales said angrily as the wood hit it in the chest and dropped to the ground. It dispersed its Fire Spin and turned to me, its eyes narrowed. It opened its large jaws, and between them I could see a ball of fire building up.  
  
'Quick Raus, let's get out of here!' I said hurriedly. Ninetales shot out a huge Flamethrower attack which I managed to dodge narrowly. 'C'mon Raus, let's go!'  
  
'Venusaur!' gasped Raus, staring behind me. I cautiously turned around to see what it was staring at. My mouth dropped open in shock when I realised what it was. Ninetales's Flamethrower had missed me, but it had hit a nearby tree, which was now going up in flames!  
  
'Oh no!' I gasped. But before I could do anything else, Ninetales spat an Ember at me, which connected with my leg. I cried out as I felt the flames burn into my skin, and had to feel grateful that I was wearing shorts; otherwise my clothes would have caught fire and I'd be in an even worse situation! I cringed, trying to ignore the pain, and turned to Raus. 'You've gotta get back to the others and get Ripple and Politwirl! Otherwise this whole forest will burn down!'  
  
'Saur . . .' said Raus worriedly, looking at me. It shook its head. 'Venusaur!' It turned to Ninetales angrily.  
  
'No!' I said. 'Please Raus, just go and get them. I don't want Ninetales to hurt you anymore, you have to go and get Ripple and Politwirl! Please, Raus!'  
  
Raus stared up at me. In the three years I'd been a pokÃ©mon trainer, Raus had disobeyed me so many times I'd lost count. It wasn't downright betrayal; Raus was a very loyal pokÃ©mon. But it had always trusted its own instincts over mine, and its own instincts were almost always to battle. No matter how much I pleaded with it to stop, Raus would never give up a battle until it won.  
  
'Please!' I begged. 'Raus, just listen to me this once!'  
  
The venusaur's big red eyes continued to stare. It was thinking, considering. Come on Raus, please just do as I say . . .  
  
'Nine!'  
  
Another flamethrower came spiralling towards me, and I gasped.  
  
'Venusaur!' Raus leapt towards me and knocked me straight to the ground. The fire of Ninetales's Flamethrower enveloped the flower on Raus's back, but the venusaur just shut its eyes and blocked out the pain. 'Saur . . . Venusaur!'  
  
Once the attack was over, Raus pushed its head underneath me, lifting it onto its back. I collapsed onto the singed flower as Raus began to run.  
  
'Woah guys, what's going on!?' Sand-Cloud exclaimed as Raus came charging back with me on its back.  
  
'There's a fire!' I said. 'Ripple, Politwirl, we need your help!'  
  
My wartortle and poliwhirl looked up from where they were eating some pokÃ©mon food.  
  
'A fire?' Gelby asked, bewildered.  
  
'A wild ninetales attacked us and a tree got set on fire,' I said hurriedly. 'If we don't put it out soon this whole forest will burn down!'  
  
'Wartortle!'  
  
'Poliwhirl!'  
  
Ripple and Politwirl leapt to their feet, ready for action.  
  
'Thanks guys,' I said. 'C'mon, let's go.'  
  
'Poreon!' Evy suddenly stood up too.  
  
'No, Evy!' I said. 'I know you only want to help but you don't know any water attacks. Just stay here, it's best you keep out of trouble.'  
  
'Vap . . .' said Evy uncertainly.  
  
'Don't worry about it,' I said. 'Ripple, Politwirl, let's go.'  
  
I started to climb off Raus's back, put to my surprise the venusaur reached out its vines and kept me there. It then extended its vines over to Ripple and Politwirl, picked one up in each vine, and placed them on its back in front of me!  
  
'Raus . . .' I said. 'You're too weak to carry us all back there.'  
  
'Venusaur,' Raus shook its head, and began to run. All I could do was be grateful that Raus was such a determined pokÃ©mon.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
Part Seventeen, Chapter Four  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Raus the venusaur, Ripple the wartortle, Politwirl the poliwhirl, Evy the vaporeon, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Chazz the charizard  
  
We soon began to smell the distinct scent of burning, and were in the vicinity of the fire in no time. It had spread from tree to tree and was now so large I doubted Ripple and Politwirl would be able to handle it. But we had to at least try.  
  
'Ripple, Politwirl, water gun!' I said. The two water pokÃ©mon leapt off Raus's back and began firing their water guns at full strength. To my distress, they had very little effect on the rapidly burning fire.  
  
'Warrrr!' shouted Ripple, putting all of its energy into the blast.  
  
'Whirl!' said Politwirl, struggling to keep up with the stronger wartortle.  
  
'Oh no,' I breathed. 'They can't do it.'  
  
'Venusaur!' Raus shook its head angrily. I looked down at it.  
  
'They can do it?' I asked.  
  
'Saur!' nodded Raus.  
  
I realised then that Raus never over-rated its abilities, it only looked on the bright side, always believing that it would pull through, just as Ripple and Politwirl would pull through now. I smiled, and turned back to the water pokÃ©mon. They were drenching the forest in water, and I wondered how much longer they could keep it up. Neither of them were fully evolved pokÃ©mon or overly strong for their species, and despite Raus's optimism, I couldn't see them ever putting this fire out.  
  
Just then, Raus picked up Ripple and Politwirl in its vines and lifted them into the air. The two pokÃ©mon looked at each other, confused.  
  
'Venusaur!' yelled Raus. Glancing down at Raus, then looking at each other once more, the two pokÃ©mon nodded. They turned to the fire below them and began spraying their water guns again. I smiled. Trust Raus to think of a tactic like that.  
  
'Por! Por!'  
  
Hearing the familiar voice, I turned around to see Evy running up to us. It had followed us all this way! Oh no . . .  
  
Behind Evy came Sand-Cloud and Gelby, followed by the other twenty-one pokÃ©mon.  
  
'It just ran off, we couldn't stop it,' puffed Gelby, gesturing to Evy.  
  
'Vaporeon!' said Evy, running over to where Raus was holding Ripple and Politwirl. I stared up at them for a moment, then turned to the rest of the pokÃ©mon. 'Vap! Vaporeon poreon!'  
  
Chazz stepped out of the crowd of pokÃ©mon and walked over to Evy. 'Charizard zard.'  
  
'Vaporeon! Poreon por por vaporeon!' said Evy.  
  
'Char?' Chazz looked shocked.  
  
'Vap,' nodded Evy. It gestured to the sky. 'Vaporeon.'  
  
Chazz nodded, then reached down and picked Evy up in its short arms. It leapt into the air and began to fly.  
  
'Chazz, what are you doing!?' I exclaimed. The last thing we needed now was a pokÃ©mon with an external flame to go flying around in the already burning forest!  
  
'Char!' said Chazz, flying up further into the sky. It flew up above the canopy until I couldn't even see it anymore.  
  
I turned to the others. 'What on earth are they doing?'  
  
'Beats me,' said Sand-Cloud, staring up at the roof of the forest.  
  
So now not only were we in the middle of a fire that Ripple and Politwirl were having trouble fighting, but Chazz and Evy had disappeared.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Seventeen, Chapter Five  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Raus the venusaur, Ripple the wartortle, Politwirl the poliwhirl, Chazz the charizard, Evy the vaporeon, Dougg the diglett, Snarlithe the growlithe, Tailz the vulpix  
  
'VAPOREON!'  
  
I suddenly heard Evy yell out from above the canopy. And before I even knew what to think, a huge wave of water poured down on the forest from above. I soaked through the trees and swept over us. Dougg buried itself in the ground to hide, and Snarlithe and Tailz ran over to me, afraid. I pulled them both into my arms comfortingly and stared up at the sky. Where had this flood of water come from? Surely Evy couldn't have done it? It didn't know any water attacks, let one one like that!  
  
Raus, Ripple and Politwirl looked around, bewildered. The fire was still burning, although only slightly. A torrent of water that strong had managed to put most of it out.  
  
'POREON!'  
  
Another wave flooded over the forest, and now almost all of the fire had dispersed. I continued to stare up. It had to be Evy, it had to be!  
  
There was one last blast of water, and then the fire had completely disappeared. A moment later, Chazz came flying back down to the ground, Evy in its arms. The vaporeon looked tired, but triumphant.  
  
'Evy,' I said, staring at it. 'How did you do that?'  
  
'Vap,' smiled Evy.  
  
'You know what, Janet?' Gelby asked.  
  
I turned to her. 'What?'  
  
'I think Evy knows Hydro Pump!' said Gelby. I stared at her for a moment, then turned back to Evy. She had to be right - it was the only explanation! Wow! Evy had learnt the most powerful water-type attack!? I laughed happily.  
  
'That's so great, Evy!' I said. 'Congratulations!'  
  
'Poreon,' smiled Evy. Ripple and Politwirl came running over to us, having been let down by Raus.  
  
'Wartortle war!'  
  
'Whirl poliwhirl!'  
  
'Vaporeon,' nodded Evy, looking down at them. Chazz placed the vaporeon on the ground and the three water pokÃ©mon began to talk to each other, probably discussing what had just happened. I smiled.  
  
'Well so much for the campfire, anyway,' said Sand-Cloud. I had to laugh.  
  
'I'm sick of this forest,' I said. 'Let's just get out of here.'  
  
'Sounds like a good idea,' said Sand-Cloud. 'We can keep travelling for a few hours, and that way we can get to the PokÃ©mon League quicker.'  
  
'But when do we get to sleep?' Gelby asked.  
  
I moaned, then bent down and put Tailz and Snarlithe on the ground. I walked over to Gelby and picked her up, placing her on my shoulder like I used to when we first became trainers.  
  
'How's that?' I smiled. 'Now you can sleep while we walk.'  
  
Gelby laughed. 'Cool!'  
  
We ended up making it out of the forest and camping at the base of a mountain. We didn't exactly feel like climbing a mountain in the middle of the night, and were all grateful to get a rest.  
  
The next morning we got up and started getting ready to leave when I did a quick check to make sure everyone was here. I counted my pokÃ©mon once, twice, three times . . . and each time I realised that there were twenty- four of them. I gulped, and turned to Sand-Cloud and Gelby.  
  
'Have you seen Fern?'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Seventeen, Chapter Six  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Catafree the butterfree, Chazz the charizard, Potow the pidgeot, Weedie the beedrill, Tailz the vulpix, Snarlithe the growlithe, Evy the vaporeon  
  
None of the pokÃ©mon seemed to have any idea where Fern had disappeared to.  
  
'It must have wandered off in the night,' said Sand-Cloud.  
  
'Oh no,' I sighed. I thought that letting the pokÃ©mon stay outside their pokÃ©balls for the night would be good for them, but I hadn't thought that they might run off! 'What should we do?'  
  
'Free!' Catafree fluttered over to me and hovered in front of my face. 'Free! Free free!'  
  
I tilted my head and wished for the thousandth time in my life that I could understand pokÃ©mon speak.  
  
'What is it, Catafree?' I asked. 'Do you know where Fern is?'  
  
'Free,' Catafree shook its head sadly. It then gestured up the mountain which lay before us. 'Bee free!'  
  
'You think it went up there?' I asked.  
  
'Free,' Catafree shrugged its big wings. 'Bee!'  
  
I nodded. 'It's worth a shot, right?'  
  
'Free,' nodded Catafree.  
  
'OK,' I said. 'We'd better get going. If it has gone up that mountain, who knows where it could have gotten to. We've got to find it before it gets completely lost!'  
  
'Free!' said Catafree, and began flying up the mountain.  
  
'C'mon everyone!' I called. 'We're moving out. Keep a look out for any signs of Fern, OK!'  
  
We began trekking up the mountain. I had tried my best to act confident, but deep down I was worried sick about what had happened to Fern. After that wild ninetales we'd encountered the day before, who knew what kind of strong pokÃ©mon would be living around here . . .  
  
Chazz, Potow and Weedie took to the air to get a bird's eye view of the surroundings and watch for any movement that could be Fern. Catafree continued to lead us, its head darting around as it sensed movement. Tailz, Snarlithe and Evy kept their noses to the ground, trying to pick up the scent of Fern.  
  
'Any sign yet, Catafree?' I called after a few minutes.  
  
'Free,' Catafree shook its head sadly. Just then, it looked up sharply. 'Free!'  
  
I looked up and gasped as I spotted a dark-coloured, large charizard fly overhead. Chazz gasped when it saw it fly past. My poor charizard was only about half the size of this other one.  
  
'Free free!' said Catafree angrily, and suddenly flew high into the air, chasing after the charizard.  
  
'What are you doing, Catafree!?' I exclaimed.  
  
'Bee free!' Catafree called back, flying off into the distance.  
  
'Oh no,' I breathed. 'Now we've lost Catafree too!'  
  
'Char!' Chazz flew down to the ground and landed in front of me. 'Char char!'  
  
It bent down on all fours and bent its long neck around, gesturing to its back. I blinked. 'You want me to fly on your back?'  
  
'Char,' nodded Chazz.  
  
I gulped. This could be tricky . . . but if it meant finding out where Catafree was going . . .  
  
'OK,' I nodded, climbing onto Chazz's back. The charizard stood up on its back legs again, and I held on to its neck.  
  
'Janet, where are you going?' Sand-Cloud asked, bewildered.  
  
'I'm going to follow Catafree,' I said.  
  
'Are you sure . . .?' Sand-Cloud asked.  
  
'Yes,' I nodded. 'You guys stay here and watch the rest of the pokÃ©mon. Chazz and I can handle it.'  
  
'Well, if you say so . . .' said Sand-Cloud. I nodded to her, as Chazz flapped its big wings and raised itself into the sky. It felt awkward, sitting on my charizard's back as it took to the air. But at the same time, it was an amazing experience. I'd always wondered what it would be like to fly. And now, thanks to Chazz, I would find out.  
  
Chazz began flapping its wings faster, and we gained speed, heading in the direction that Catafree and the other charizard had flown. Before long, I caught sight of a familiar-looking butterfree, flying at full speed after a large red lizard.  
  
'That's them,' I said.  
  
'Char,' Chazz nodded, and accelerated towards them.  
  
The charizard led us further up the mountain, and I couldn't help noticing that the further up we flew, the hotter it became. Soon enough, we were at the top of the mountain and I realised in shock that this was not any ordinary mountain, but it was the volcano I had seen in the photo of the PokÃ©mon League building! That charizard must have lived up there!  
  
Chazz and I watched as the charizard landed on the volcano's surface. I noticed suddenly that it was carrying something in its clawed hands. Two small blue figures with green leaves sprouting out the top. I gasped. They were oddishes! I narrowed my eyes and looked closer, and realised that yes, one of them was Fern!  
  
'That charizard has Fern!' I said.  
  
'Free!' Catafree was flying down towards the charizard angrily. It must have known all along that it had Fern, that was why it had led us here.  
  
'Char?' the charizard looked up, as if only just spotting Catafree. It narrowed its eyes and growled. 'Charrr!'  
  
'Bee!' said Catafree, flying at the charizard and tackling it.  
  
'Char!' the charizard spat an ember at Catafree, clutching on tightly to Fern and the other oddish.  
  
'Catafree, look out!' I said. The charizard was a fire type -- Catafree was strong, but no bug pokÃ©mon could last very long against a charizard. But it had to at least try. 'Try a psybeam!'  
  
'Free!' nodded Catafree. It gathered its psychic energy and sent a blast at the charizard, knocking it back but not doing much damage.  
  
'Charmander!'  
  
'Char char! Mander!'  
  
I stared as I saw two little charmanders crawl down from the peak of the volcano, rushing towards the charizard. The winged lizard turned its head to look at them.  
  
'Char!' it said. Holding on to each oddish by its leaves, it ran towards the charmanders and handed an oddish to each one. It then gestured to the top of the volcano. 'Char!'  
  
'Oh no!' I gasped, as the charmanders began running back to the top. 'Catafree, stop those charmanders! Sleep powder!'  
  
'Free!' Catafree fluttered over to the little fire pokÃ©mon and sprinkled powder over them. They both fell as sleep instantly as they breathed it in. The oddishes dropped from their tiny arms and began to run away.  
  
'Charr!' the charizard roared, and let out a huge fire blast aimed at Catafree. Fire blast!? But how could a wild charizard know a move like that?  
  
I didn't have any time to think about it, as the fire collided with Catafree, singing its delicate wings.  
  
'Freeeee!' it cried out.  
  
'Catafree!' I cried.  
  
'Free!' Catafree shook its head and forced itself to stay alert. It then gathered its energy and fired a psybeam at the charizard. It was thrown back, but again, received hardly any damage.  
  
'Quick Chazz!' I said. 'While it's distracted, let's go down and grab those oddishes!'  
  
'Char,' nodded Chazz. It flew down to where Fern and the other oddish were running away. It scooped them up in its small arms and flew back into the sky again.  
  
'Great work, Chazz!' I said. I turned to my butterfree. 'Catafree, let's get out of here!'  
  
But it was too late to escape, as the charizard hit Catafree with a flamethrower. The bug pokÃ©mon cried out.  
  
'We've got to stop that charizard!' I said.  
  
Just then, the volcano began to vibrate. I felt myself go cold with horror. Was it going to erupt?  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Seventeen, Chapter Seven  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Chazz the charizard, Catafree the butterfree, Fern the oddish, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu  
  
'Chazz, fly over to Catafree!' I said. Chazz nodded and glided over to my butterfree. I pulled it into my arms. It looked up at me weakly.  
  
'Free . . .' it murmured.  
  
'You fought very bravely,' I said. 'I'm just glad you're safe.'  
  
But I really had no idea if any of us were safe yet. The volcano continued to shake, and a rumbling noise began to build up inside of it. The wild charizard suddenly wasn't concerned with fighting us anymore, but instead ran to the little charmanders and picked them up protectively.  
  
I knew I should tell Chazz to fly away while we still had a chance, but I was simply too afraid to do anything. If that volcano erupted, it would be the end of all of us!  
  
Suddenly flames burst out of the top of the volcano, and I hugged Catafree tighter in fear. But the flames weren't followed by an eruption of lava. Instead, a strange ball of fire shot into the air. I heard a loud screech, and then the ball formed a bird-like shape and flew away into the distance.  
  
It was all over. I stared after the strange fire in shock.  
  
'What was that?' I asked, bewildered.  
  
'Char char,' said Chazz, looking down at the oddishes in its arms and then bending its long neck around to see if Catafree and I were all right. It nodded to itself, then began to fly back to where the others were. I was too shocked to say anything more.  
  
'What on earth just happened!?' Sand-Cloud exclaimed as Chazz landed in front of the group. I sighed with relief and climbed off my charizard's back.  
  
'Thanks Chazz,' I said. Chazz placed Fern and the other oddish on the ground.  
  
'What happened?' Sand-Cloud asked again.  
  
'I have no idea,' I said. 'This wild charizard took Fern and that other oddish to the top of the volcano and--'  
  
'Volcano!?' Gelby exclaimed. 'This mountain is a volcano?'  
  
'Yeah,' I nodded.  
  
'Then is that why it was shaking?' Sand-Cloud asked. 'Was it . . . erupting?'  
  
'I don't know, I don't understand it,' I said. 'I thought it was erupting but then this ball of fire just rose into the air and like . . . flew away.'  
  
'This place is creepy,' said Gelby.  
  
'I know,' I said. 'No wonder they chose to put the PokÃ©mon League here, it's certainly testing us.'  
  
'So what was the charizard doing with the oddishes?' Sand-Cloud asked.  
  
'I've got no idea,' I said. 'It gave them to these two little charmanders.'  
  
'Do you think it was . . . feeding them?' Sand-Cloud asked.  
  
I stared at her. 'Oh my gosh, I hope not!'  
  
'They're lucky you saved them,' said Gelby.  
  
'I didn't really do anything,' I said. 'It was all Catafree and Chazz.'  
  
'We can always count on them,' smiled Gelby.  
  
I bent down to Fern and the other oddish. 'What are we going to do with this other oddish? We can't just leave it here, if that charizard is going to kidnap it again.'  
  
'Let's take it with us,' said Sand-Cloud. 'Sure you already have an oddish, but you can always have another one.'  
  
I smiled and looked at the oddish. 'How would you like to come with us?'  
  
The oddish turned to Fern. 'Oddish?'  
  
Fern smiled. 'Oddish! Odd!'  
  
The other oddish looked back at me, a smile on its face. It nodded. 'Oddish!'  
  
'Great!' I said. 'Well, I think we'd better give you a name, then. How about . . . Bloom?'  
  
'Oddish,' nodded the oddish.  
  
'Cool,' I smiled.  
  
'Let's get out of here,' said Sand-Cloud. 'I just want to get to the PokÃ©mon League as soon as possible now.'  
  
I nodded. 'Let's get going. But first, have we got any burn heals left?'  
  
Sand-Cloud opened the backpack. 'Yeah, here.'  
  
'Thanks,' I said, taking the burn heal. I healed Catafree of its burns, and we began to move again. Who knows what we'd come across next . . .  
  
~Janet~  
  
Part Seventeen, Chapter Eight  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Pikapi the raichu  
  
We made a lot of progress that day, reaching the bottom of another mountain before nightfall. We didn't know which mountain it was, nor did we actually know how to get to the PokÃ©mon League from there -- trainers weren't issued with a map in order to make it that bit more challenging. We had encountered a few pokÃ©mon that day (a growlithe, a magneton and a voltorb) but nothing threatening like that ninetales and charizard had been. My pokÃ©mon were gaining much needed experience, and I was becoming more and more confident that they would do well in the PokÃ©mon League battle. That night we set down to a well-needed rest, not bothering to start a campfire in memory of what had happened last time.  
  
'Rai, rai . . .'  
  
'Pika pikachu! Chuuu!'  
  
'Raichu rai raichu?'  
  
'Chu chu! Pika pi pi pikachu!'  
  
'Rai!?'  
  
'Pika. Pikachu chu.'  
  
'Raichu!'  
  
I moaned and rubbed my eyes, sitting up. It was the middle of the night, what were those voices? I looked over to where they were coming from, and was shocked to see a whole pack of pikachus -- there must have been at least twenty of them! -- gathered by Pikapi and talking to it. They looked worried, and Pikapi seemed hesitant about something.  
  
'Raichu rai,' it said.  
  
'Pika pi!' the pikachu that stood in front of the pack (probably the leader) shook its head. 'Pika pika chu!'  
  
'Rai . . .' Pikapi said uncertainly, then turned and spotted me. Its eyes lit up. 'Raichu rai!' It gestured to the pikachus. 'Raichu!'  
  
'Pika!' said the leader pikachu, and suddenly the group began to run away, up the mountain. Pikapi began to follow them.  
  
'Hey, Pikapi!' I exclaimed. 'Where are you going?'  
  
'Raichu rai!' Pikapi called back.  
  
I sighed. I was starting to get sick of this. Perhaps I should have learnt by now that keeping twenty-eight pokÃ©mon out of their pokÃ©balls made it horribly hard to keep track of them all. But then again, if Pikapi hadn't been out of its pokÃ©ball it wouldn't have been able to do whatever these pikachus were asking it to. I had to see what was going on. If the pikachus were in trouble I would have to help them, and I didn't want Pikapi getting into any danger without me around to help it.  
  
So I stood up and hurried after Pikapi. Despite their tiny legs, those pikachus were really fast, and I had almost lost sight of them already. To make it worse, this mountain had vegetation on it. The volcano had been easier to navigate because it was totally bare, but this one had trees covering it, intermingled with . . . power lines!? So that was it -- this mountain was the mountain with the power lines which I had also seen in the PokÃ©mon League photo. That was somewhat reassuring -- at least we weren't getting any further away from the PokÃ©mon League!  
  
I brought my attention back to what was happening. As we climbed higher up the mountain, the power lines became more and more common, and finally led to an old, abandoned-looking building that was falling apart everywhere. The pikachus ran inside the building through a small hole in the bottom of the wall. Pikapi had to get down on its belly and pull itself through, but it still managed to get inside.  
  
So now I couldn't even see them anymore. But I wasn't going to give up after coming this far. I got down on the ground and grabbed hold of the charred wood surrounding the hole and pulled it. The entire plank of wood came free easily, and I managed to slip through into the building.  
  
'Pika!?' there was a chorus of gasps as the pikachus saw me step inside. Then Pikapi turned and saw me.  
  
'Raichu!' it smiled. It turned back to the pikachus. 'Raichu rai rai rai!'  
  
'Pika . . .' the pikachus seemed hesitant, but accepted that I was a friend. The leader ran over to the other side of the room where a small candle was burning. It picked the candle up in its mouth and carried it over to the other corner of the room and touched it to a larger, unlit candle. The wick enkindled and shed light on the room. I gasped as I saw a huge power generator lying dormant along the back wall.  
  
'Pika pikachu,' said the leader pikachu, walking over to the generator and pulling out two wires with its short paws. It put one to each of its red cheeks and shut its eyes, concentrating. It built up its electricity and sent it running down the wires. But nothing happened. The pikachu shook its head sadly. 'Pika pi.'  
  
'Raichu rai!' smiled Pikapi, running over to the leader pikachu. It patted it on the back, then took the wires in its paws and put them to its own cheeks. 'Raichu raichu raichu raichu . . . RAIIIIII!!!'  
  
Pikapi used its Thunder attack, and the group of pikachus gasped as huge bolts of electricity streamed down the wires to the generator. The machine suddenly came to life, meters moving and dials spinning. The room lit up as lights on the roof turned on, and through the dirty windows of the building I could see electricity physically running down the power lines. I stared in bewilderment. Pikapi certainly was one powerful raichu . . .  
  
'Pika pi!' the pikachus cheered, rushing over to Pikapi and hugging it.  
  
'Rai, rai!' said Pikapi, blushing. I smiled. So all the pikachus had wanted was for Pikapi to start the generator. I was so happy that my raichu had been able to help!  
  
'Pika!' said the leader pikachu suddenly. 'Pikachu!'  
  
It ran back outside the building. The other pikachus hesitated, then followed.  
  
'Rai?' Pikapi chased after them, and I followed slowly.  
  
'Pikachu!' the leader pointed into the sky and the little electric pokÃ©mon raised their heads. Up above, a strange mass of electricity flew overhead, before letting out a cry and disappearing into the distance.  
  
'Pika . . .' the pikachus said in wonder.  
  
'Rai . . .' Pikapi stared up at the sky, amazed.  
  
'What was that . . .?' I breathed. The lands surrounding the PokÃ©mon League were becoming more mysterious each day.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Seventeen, Chapter Nine  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Pikapi the raichu, Fern the oddish, Bloom the oddish, Slothie the snorlax  
  
'Janet!' Sand-Cloud yelled as Pikapi and I came strolling back down the mountain to the rest of the team.  
  
'What happened? Where have you been?' Gelby asked, worried.  
  
'Pikapi just helped some pikachus start up their generator . . .' I said.  
  
'Rai,' smiled Pikapi.  
  
'Next time tell us before you wander off in the middle of the night!' said Sand-Cloud. 'We wake up seeing some freaky ball of electricity fly through the air and realise you're missing, don't you think we get a little worried!? Yeah, we should have known it was actually you that started the whole thing!'  
  
'We didn't do that!' I objected. 'Pikapi just started the generator, and then that thing appeared!'  
  
'Well whatever!' said Sand-Cloud. 'Next time give us some warning!'  
  
'Um . . . sorry,' I said guiltily.  
  
Gelby sighed. 'Whatever happened, at least you're safe. And now we know that the PokÃ©mon League's not up that mountain, so we can move on to the next one tomorrow. Now let's get some sleep!'  
  
It seemed impossible, but somehow we had managed to go in a circle the next day. We hadn't headed back on any track we'd been on, but before long we found ourselves approaching that volcano again! We gave up, and settled down for the night at the base of yet another mountain. I noticed as we settled down to sleep that Fern and Bloom kept glancing nervously as the volcano which loomed in the distance.  
  
'Hey guys,' I said. 'I think we should take turns at keeping watch tonight.'  
  
'What!?' Gelby exclaimed.  
  
'Why?' Sand-Cloud asked.  
  
''Cause Fern and Bloom are worried,' I said, gesturing to the oddishes. 'And so am I. That charizard could be around here anywhere, and even if it's not, something else could be. I don't want anything to happen to the pokÃ©mon in the middle of the night!'  
  
'I suppose you have a point,' said Sand-Cloud.  
  
'But what about our sleep?' Gelby moaned.  
  
'We'll take turns,' said Sand-Cloud. 'We'll each do three hours. Gelby can go first, 'cause once she gets to sleep there's no way we're gonna be able to wake her up.'  
  
I laughed. 'Good point.'  
  
'I'll go second,' said Sand-Cloud. 'And you can go last.'  
  
I nodded. 'Sounds good.'  
  
'Hang on!' Gelby said desperately. 'I haven't agreed to anything!'  
  
'Yes you have,' said Sand-Cloud. 'You agreed when you agreed to come with us on this pokÃ©mon journey. Now get out there and watch while we get some sleep.'  
  
'This is so unfair,' complained Gelby, trudging off as Sand-Cloud and I lay down to get some sleep.  
  
'She'll get over it tomorrow,' said Sand-Cloud.  
  
'I'm not so sure about that!' I laughed.  
  
'Janet!'  
  
I felt Sand-Cloud shaking me, and I moaned.  
  
'It's your turn to stand watch!' said Sand-Cloud.  
  
'I'm beginning to wish I hadn't thought of this idea,' I moaned as I rubbed my eyes and got up.  
  
'So am I,' yawned Sand-Cloud. 'I'm just glad it's over with.'  
  
'Yeah, for some people,' I muttered. I sighed as I watched Sand-Cloud lie down and fall asleep instantly. I walked around the group of sleeping pokÃ©mon and sat down. This was going to be so boring.  
  
I noticed after a few minutes just how cold it was out here. It seemed strange, considering there was a volcano only a few hundred metres away which I remembered as being incredibly hot. Maybe it was just because it was so early, but it was utterly freezing! I pulled my knees up under my chin and hugged my legs to keep myself warm.  
  
'Snor?'  
  
I turned around, surprised, and saw Slothie walking towards me. It sat down beside me and put one of its big arms around my back. I laughed and leant against its warm fur, happy to be free of the cold.  
  
'What are you doing awake?' I asked quietly. 'You're a snorlax, aren't you meant to sleep twenty-five hours a day?'  
  
'Snor,' smiled Slothie. It shrugged. 'Snorlax lax.'  
  
Slothie certainly was an unusual snorlax! It didn't sleep all day, didn't eat nearly as much as I expected snorlaxes to, and it was always ready to fight; it certainly wasn't lazy! Perhaps "Slothie" hadn't been the most appropriate name for it after all!  
  
'Thanks for keeping me company, Slothie,' I said. 'This is going to be the most boring three hours of my life. I don't know why I even suggested it.'  
  
Slothie tilted its head, then turned and pointed at Fern and Bloom, curled up asleep beside each other. 'Snorlax.'  
  
I smiled. 'Yeah, I had to do it, for them.'  
  
Suddenly it didn't matter to me that I was freezing, tired and bored. As long as those two little oddishes could get a comfortable night's sleep, was all that mattered.  
  
'Snorlax?' Slothie asked all of a sudden, darting its head back to the front. It stood up. 'Snorlax!'  
  
'What is it?' I asked, getting up as well.  
  
'Snorlax! Snorlax snor!' said Slothie excitedly, pointing. I looked over at what it was pointing at and noticed a jynx walking along! A wild jynx, in the middle of nowhere!  
  
'Wow!' I exclaimed. 'OK sure, jynxes are the most ugly pokÃ©mon I've seen in my life, but they're really rare, and powerful too! Let's see if we can catch it!'  
  
'Snorlax!' nodded Slothie.  
  
'Let's go!' I said, and we began to run after the jynx.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Seventeen, Chapter Ten  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Slothie the snorlax  
  
Slothie and I charged off after the jynx. When it saw us, it looked shocked, and began to run away. We followed it around some boulders before chasing it up a steep slope.  
  
'Don't tell me we're climbing another mountain,' I moaned.  
  
'Snorlax lax,' said Slothie, focussed on getting the jynx. I had to be grateful that Slothie was at a really high level and very fit for a snorlax; not too many of its species would be able to run as fast as it could!  
  
'Jynx! Jynx!' cried the jynx as it continued to run from us.  
  
'If only you had a long-distance attack we'd be able to stop it from here . . .' I said, more thinking aloud to myself than actually talking to Slothie.  
  
'Snor . . .' said Slothie thoughtfully.  
  
'Cloyster!'  
  
'Woah!' I exclaimed, as a cloyster suddenly appeared in front of us. 'Hey, get out of the way, we're trying to catch that jynx!'  
  
I ran past the cloyster, and seconds later felt an icy-cold beam hit me from behind. I cried out and fell to the ground.  
  
'Cloyster!' the cloyster growled angrily at me.  
  
'What'd I do!?' I exclaimed, as it advanced on me.  
  
'Snorlax!' said Slothie angrily, charging at the cloyster with a headbutt and knocking it away.  
  
'Thanks Slothie,' I said, pulling myself up. 'But now we've lost that jynx . . .'  
  
'Snor . . .' said Slothie, looking around. 'Snorlax!'  
  
It began running again -- it must have spotted the jynx! After a minute of running, I realised that it had indeed found the jynx again; there it was, still running from us. Wow, Slothie had better eyesight than me, even with those tiny eyes of its!  
  
We began following the jynx again, and all it did was lead us further and further up the mountain, never getting close enough for Slothie to use one of its attacks. Before long I noticed snow on the mountain -- this must have been the snow-covered mountain we had seen in the photo. If we had seen all three of the surrounding mountains already, we must be right near the mountain which the PokÃ©mon League stood on! But I didn't have time to think about that now -- we had to concentrate on getting that jynx!  
  
'Snorlax!' Slothie opened its mouth, as if to shoot a long-distance attack. It must have then realised that it didn't know any, as it suddenly stopped. It turned around quickly, and I spotted a dewgong sliding towards us down the snow.  
  
'A dewgong!' I exclaimed. Did dewgongs really live on mountains!? 'Wow!'  
  
I soon lost my excitement, however, as the dewgong shot an ice beam straight at me. What was with these ice pokÃ©mon attacking me!? I managed to narrowly dodge the ice beam, and Slothie stepped in, leaping into the air and body slamming the dewgong. The wild pokÃ©mon crawled out from underneath the bulk of Slothie's body and ran away, crying out.  
  
'Good work Slothie,' I said.  
  
'Snor!' said Slothie, breaking into a run again as it spotted the jynx. It opened its mouth again, and this time I was shocked to see energy forming between its jaws. What move was this!? 'Snorlax snorlax . . . SNOR!!'  
  
Slothie shot out a huge blast of energy which connected with the jynx and knocked it to the ground, defeated in one hit. Slothie puffed and sat down, having to regain its energy after using such a powerful attack. Had my snorlax really just used . . . Hyper Beam?  
  
'Woah,' I breathed. 'That was amazing!'  
  
'Snorlax,' smiled Slothie. I smiled back at it, then hurried over to where the jynx was lying defeated. It looked up at me weakly.  
  
'Jyyyynx . . .' it moaned.  
  
'Now to catch it,' I said. And then realised.  
  
Oh no, how could I be so stupid!?!?  
  
My pokÃ©balls were in our backpack down with the others! All this effort and I couldn't even catch the jynx! I moaned, disappointed.  
  
'Well, looks like you're gonna be free after all,' I said to the jynx, before shaking my head and trudging back to Slothie.  
  
'Snorlax?' it asked, confused.  
  
'I uh . . . kind of forgot to bring my pokÃ©balls,' I said.  
  
'Snorlax!!' said Slothie angrily.  
  
'Er, sorry,' I said.  
  
We soon came back down to where the others were still asleep. Slothie promptly joined them, lying down and going to sleep as soon as we got there. I sighed. I still had two hours left. Bored and disappointed, I looked up at the sky. Maybe I was just tired, but I could have sworn I saw a strange icy formation fly through the sky . . .  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Seventeen, Chapter Eleven  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu  
  
'Well see, my uh, theory is that that's the snow-covered mountain we saw in the picture,' I said, not wanting to tell the others about my little adventure that morning. 'So if we've already seen the volcano and the mountain with the power plant, the PokÃ©mon League mountain must be right in the middle, yeah?'  
  
'Yeah,' nodded Sand-Cloud, studying the photo of the PokÃ©mon League.  
  
'So it must be that mountain over there,' I said, pointing.  
  
'I think you're right,' said Sand-Cloud. 'We'd better get going, then.'  
  
'Maybe if we'd gotten more sleep we'd be in more of a mood to go,' moaned Gelby, yawning.  
  
'Oh get over it,' I said. 'When we get up there, you can sleep while I get my Master Badge!'  
  
'Good!' said Gelby. I laughed, and we soon began moving again, heading for the mountain upon which we found finally find the PokÃ©mon League.  
  
'Janet! Hey Janet, is that you?'  
  
The last thing I expected to hear was a familiar voice calling out my name. Startled, I turned and saw a figure running towards me. He dodged the trees and rocks and the stares of the pokÃ©mon who hadn't met him, and soon reached me.  
  
'Janet!' he yelled excitedly, wrapping his arms around me. All I could do was laugh. Imagine, we'd both ended up here at the exact same time!  
  
'We're here,' I said. 'We're really here.'  
  
'Not quite yet,' said Luke, gesturing up the mountain. 'We've still got about a hundred metres to go.'  
  
'And then . . . the PokÃ©mon League,' I said. I shook my head. 'I can't believe it, I really can't believe we've made it.'  
  
'And we made it together,' said Luke, smiling at me. 'I'm really glad we're both here together, Janet.'  
  
'Yeah,' I smiled. 'I've been wondering all this time who'd get here first, but this is the best possible situation, both of us getting here at the same time.'  
  
'I know,' said Luke. 'I didn't want to beat you here because I know I'm not any better than you. But I didn't want get here after here because then I wouldn't be good enough . . .'  
  
''Neither of us is any better, Luke,' I said. 'We're in this together. Sure we've been separated for a lot of our pokÃ©mon journeys, but all along, we've really been in this together.'  
  
'I think I'm gonna throw up,' commented Sand-Cloud, and I glared at her.  
  
'It's just up there,' said Luke. 'The PokÃ©mon League. This is our final test, Janet. We're really going to find out whether we've got what it takes to be pokÃ©mon maters.'  
  
'It's really kind of scary . . .' I said.  
  
'Well don't be scared,' said Luke, and hugged me again. 'Like you said, we're in this together. We'll both be there for each other.'  
  
'Any moment now, I'm gonna hurl,' said Sand-Cloud.  
  
'Oh shut up, Sand-Cloud!' I said. I shook my head. 'Come on, let's just get going.'  
  
And so we started walking, trekking up the final piece of land we'd ever have to cover on our pokÃ©mon journey.  
  
~Janet~  
  
END OF PART SEVENTEEN 


	20. Part Eighteen

Part Eighteen, Chapter One  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson  
  
The PokÃ©mon League. It stood before us, tall and proud, at the summit of the tallest mountain in the area, surrounded by three smaller mountains, and topped by that strange purple glow. It was hard to believe that after all this time, we were really standing in front of the building we had only dreamt about until now. Inside that building lay the final test, the battle which would decide whether I was master material, or whether I was to go down in the hall of shame.  
  
I was nervous, I was excited, and I was a little afraid. What if I lost? Would all of my troubles have been for nothing? Sure, I had a lot of faith in my pokÃ©mon, but our last gym battle had been extremely difficult and we'd only just won on our second attempt. If it had been so hard for us to win our fifteenth badge, imagine how hard it would be to beat this final opponent!  
  
I suddenly realised that I didn't even know what kind of pokÃ©mon I would be battling against. The fifteen gym system had been designed so that trainers had experience against fighting each of the fifteen different types. But for the PokÃ©mon League? There weren't any types left for the leader to use, so what would it be? A combination team, most likely, and that would be tricky. I'd become so accustomed to fighting a set type of pokÃ©mon that I'd learnt to rely a lot on type advantages . . . if I didn't even know what types my opponent would use, how would I know who would have the advantage?  
  
But I'd thought a lot about my team during our travel to the PokÃ©mon League, and I had decided who I'd be using. Unless any hints were given as to the leader's pokÃ©mon sometime before I had to fight, I'd stick with the team I'd chosen.  
  
'C'mon, let's go,' said Luke, jerking me out of my thoughts. I turned to him and nodded, and we stepped through the automatic doors into the building.  
  
From behind a desk, a girl who seemed only a year or so older than us looked up. She smiled.  
  
'Ah, some challengers, I suppose?' she asked.  
  
'Yeah,' said Luke. 'We're here for the master badge.'  
  
'Of course,' nodded the girl. 'If you could just give me your details?'  
  
Luke and I gave her our names and addresses, and then the girl scanned our pokÃ©dexes to make sure we were genuine. We then had to hand her our fifteen badges, which were also scanned for authenticity.  
  
'Everything seems to be in order,' smiled the girl. 'OK, here's the drill. We have three battle rooms, so we can have three battles at a time. You may both battle at the same time in different rooms if you like, or one after the other in the same room if you'd prefer. However, no word must be spoken about the pokÃ©mon your opponent uses in battle, whether you win or lose. Is that clear?'  
  
'Um, of course,' I nodded. Luke also nodded.  
  
'You may use up to six pokÃ©mon,' the girl eyed the twenty-eight pokÃ©mon which had scrambled into the room after me. 'It will be a standard battle, no time limits or pokÃ©mon species limits. Only moves officially recognised as legal moves for your particular pokÃ©mon can be used or you will be disqualified. Items may not be used.'  
  
'Items may not be used!?' I exclaimed.  
  
'That is what the rules state,' said the girl. I sighed, and nodded. 'You will win the battle by causing all of the opponent's pokÃ©mon to faint. If you use selfdestruct or explosion on your final pokÃ©mon, you will be disqualified whether or not you defeat the opponent with such a move. Any questions?'  
  
Luke and I looked at each other, then shook our heads.  
  
The girl nodded. 'So what will it be? Would you like to go at the same time? We have all three rooms free at the moment.'  
  
We looked at each other once more, and nodded to each other.  
  
'Yeah, we'll go at the same time,' said Luke.  
  
The girl nodded, then turned to Sand-Cloud and Gelby. 'Are you here as spectators?'  
  
'Um, yeah,' nodded Sand-Cloud.  
  
'We don't allow spectators to enter the stadium with the challenger,' said the girl. 'You may only watch from behind the sound-proof glass so that you don't help the challenger in any way.'  
  
I swallowed. I didn't like the sound of this. Sand-Cloud and Gelby often offered me advice during battles, and I wasn't sure I'd be able to get through this without their support . . . but if those were the rules, I'd have to obey them.  
  
Sand-Cloud sighed. 'OK, sure. We're gonna watch Janet.'  
  
'All right then,' said the girl. 'Get your pokÃ©mon teams ready. Janet, you'll be in room one, and Luke, you'll be in room two. You may begin whenever you're ready.'  
  
~Janet~  
  
Part Eighteen, Chapter Two  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Slothie the snorlax, Evy the vaporeon  
  
Sweating like mad with nerves, I stepped into the arena. In my pockets were six pokÃ©balls, containing the team I had chosen to battle with.  
  
Chazz the charizard was the first pokÃ©mon I had ever caught. I had raised it since it was a charmander, and we'd become not only a great battling team, but great friends. Chazz was one of the most loyal pokÃ©mon I had ever met, it did whatever it could for me and the rest of my pokÃ©mon. It wasn't the strongest charizard in the world, I knew that very well, but I was proud of it, and its fire type moves would be great for any grass, bug or ice pokÃ©mon we'd come across.  
  
I'd caught Pikapi the raichu just two days after Chazz, and I'd relied on it a lot during my time as a trainer. It was a friendly, innocent little pokÃ©mon whose sheer power in electric attacks had earned me a lot of victories. I was relying on its electric attacks for water and flying types.  
  
Catafree the butterfree was another pokÃ©mon I had been with since my first few weeks as a trainer. While it was a dual bug and flying pokÃ©mon, it didn't know any moves of those types, and battled more as a psychic. Psychic moves were generally reliable because of their effectiveness against all but psychic pokÃ©mon, and their added damage against fighting and poison pokÃ©mon made them really pack a lot of power.  
  
Raus the venusaur had been given to me by the Nurse Joy in Blastoise Centre, to help me defeat the water-type leader Andrew. It had certainly been a lot of help during that battle, and many more to come. Raus had been abandoned by its previous trainer, which may have had something to do with its unbelievable determination and stubbornness in battle. At times Raus could be over-confident, but it was also very reliable for knocking out those tricky opponents. The grass type moves that Raus was armed with would be perfect for water, ground and rock pokÃ©mon.  
  
Evy the vaporeon was another pokÃ©mon which have been given to me. Its previous trainer, Sally the eevee breeder, had given Evy to me and its twin Evan to Luke after we had saved them from a fire. I'd been a pokÃ©mon trainer for more than a year at that point, so I hadn't had Evy for nearly as long as the first four members of my team, but the vaporeon had still become one of my most reliable pokÃ©mon. It was versatile in that it knew both ice and water type moves, making it a great combatant for grass, flying, ground, dragon, fire, and rock type pokÃ©mon!  
  
And finally, Slothie the snorlax. I had captured it in the wild after Chazz had found it and it had been attacked by two of my rivals, Ace and Kat. It had turned out to be an incredibly powerful pokÃ©mon. It could get a little angry at times and go a little over the top, but it usually turned out to be for the best. While it only knew normal-type attacks, they were great for all-round effectiveness; Slothie would only really be disadvantaged if it came across a rock type.  
  
My team wouldn't be that great if it came up against electric, psychic or ghost pokÃ©mon, but I was just hoping that wouldn't happen. And if it did . . . I'd figure out what to do with the pokÃ©mon I had. We would win this, we had to win this!  
  
As I ran my hands over the six pokÃ©balls, wondering who I would send out first, the master trainer appeared from a door at the other side of the arena. He didn't look as old as I had expected, only in his twenties or maybe thirties. He wore casual clothing, nothing clichÃ©d or stereotypical of a master trainer. And at his belt were six pokÃ©balls . . . my opponents.  
  
'Hello Janet,' he said cheerfully. 'My name's Zebulun, and I'll be your opponent. I suppose you know all the rules. Use up to six pokÃ©mon, no items, that's about it. Should we get started?'  
  
I nodded.  
  
Zebulun smiled. 'Just relax, you're not gonna win if you're stressed. But we'd better not dawdle. Go on, choose your first pokÃ©mon.'  
  
I took a deep breath. So he was expecting me to choose first. All right then, go with one who doesn't have many weaknesses . . .  
  
'Slothie!' I said. 'I choose you!'  
  
'A snorlax,' nodded Zebulun. 'A good choice, great pokÃ©mon if you get their strategies right. Let's see how this turns out . . . Nidoking, I choose you!'  
  
I watched, curious, as the spiked, tough-looking purple pokÃ©mon appeared. I'd never battled a nidoking before. I'd battled a nidorino, and I had a nidoran male, but I hadn't ever come across the fully evolved form. This battle was going to be very unpredictable . . .  
  
'Nidoking,' said Zebulun. 'Let's start things off. Toxic!'  
  
'King!' roared his pokÃ©mon. All I could do was watch in horror as it spat out a poisonous substance which sunk into Slothie's skin, poisoning it badly.  
  
'Oh no,' I breathed. Without the use of items, how was I going to win against a pokÃ©mon that could poison its opponents? And it wasn't just poison, it was Toxic, the worst kind of poisoning attack. But I had to do something. 'Slothie, body slam!'  
  
Slothie forced itself to ignore the effects of the poison, and leapt into the air, slamming down on top of Nidoking. It inflicted a small amount of damage; not enough to really effect it much at all. And of course, the poison only caused Slothie to hurt itself in the process. I had to do something about this.  
  
'Nidoking,' said Zebulun. 'Bide!'  
  
Bide? I had never encountered this move before. Maybe I should have studied for this battle . . . I had no idea what to expect from this move! When you didn't know what your opponent was doing, it probably wasn't a great idea to switch pokÃ©mon . . . but I had to get Slothie out of there before the poison got to it. It was perhaps the strongest of all my pokÃ©mon, and I needed to save it for later.  
  
'Slothie, return!' I called. I took out my next pokÃ©ball. If I couldn't predict Nidoking's attack, I'd just have to go with the type advantage. 'Evy, go!'  
  
'This should be interesting,' smiled Zebulun.  
  
'Evy,' I said. 'Let's try and knock this one out with Hydro Pump.'  
  
'Poreon,' nodded Evy. It took a deep breath, then leapt into the air and spun around, squirting a torrent of water from its mouth and the pores of its skin. Nidoking fell back upon the impact of the super-effective attack. Evy seemed to have done a great deal of damage. As my vaporeon landed, it braced itself for Nidoking's retaliation . . . but nothing came! I looked over at Zebulun, confused. Was he going to tell his pokÃ©mon to attack or not!?  
  
'Oh, do go on,' he nodded. 'Don't waste your time, keep battling!'  
  
I just stared at him. What was going on here? He obviously had some kind of trick up his sleeve . . . why else wouldn't he tell Nidoking to attack? There had to be some catch to letting Evy just keep attacking it . . . but since I had no idea what it was, there was nothing I could do about it. I just had to go with my instincts.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Eighteen, Chapter Three  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Zebulun the pokÃ©mon leader of mastery, Evy the vaporeon, Slothie the snorlax  
  
'Evy, Hydro Pump seems to be working,' I said. 'Try another one.'  
  
Evy attacked once more, this time even stronger than before -- a critical hit! Nidoking's health points were draining rapidly. But still, no attack. Did Zebulun want me to defeat his pokÃ©mon?  
  
'Let's try something else,' I said to Evy. I didn't want Evy to waste all of its energy on using Hydro Pump, and besides, what if I came across another ground-type, or a fire-type, and needed Evy's water then? 'Try an Aurora Beam!'  
  
'Vaporeon!' Evy shot out a beam of ice at Nidoking. The ground pokÃ©mon took the blow, but I could tell that it wasn't going to be able to take much more. Just when I thought it might be about to faint, it suddenly began glowing with energy. It shot its arms into the air and roared.  
  
'Nidoking, you know what to do,' smiled Zebulun. 'Unleash the Bide attack!'  
  
'Nidoking!' the pokÃ©mon roared, and suddenly a great ball of energy appeared in its arms. It held it there for a moment, allowing it to grow even larger, before it finally hurled it at Evy. I gasped. How could my little vaporeon handle that!?  
  
The ball hit Evy and sent it hurtling through the air, yelping in pain. What was that attack!? How was I supposed to combat that!?  
  
'Por . . .' moaned Evy as it dropped to the ground.  
  
'Oh no,' I said, shaking my head. This nidoking was going to be one tough opponent to beat . . . and it was only the first of my obstacles!  
  
'Nidoking, Bide!'  
  
I thought and thought and thought about it. Bide, Bide, Bide. I'd heard of it, I was sure of it. But what did it do? Nidoking had stood there and allowed itself to get hit by Evy's attacks, and then it had fought back even stronger. Did that mean that Nidoking had absorbed Evy's attacks and just thrown them right back, at an even more powerful level? That was the only explanation I could think of. And if that was the case, not even Evy's Hydro Pump would be able to hurt that Nidoking without meaning serious damage in return.  
  
'Evy, return!' I called, zapping my pokÃ©mon back inside its pokÃ©ball. I held the ball up to my mouth and whispered to it. 'Evy, you fought really well. Have a good rest, I might need you later.'  
  
I had to think of something, and quick. I'd already recalled two pokÃ©mon and Zebulun was still on his first. But who could I send out that would be able to defeat Nidoking? Catafree could use its psychic attacks, they'd work well on Nidoking's poison element, but then wouldn't it just fight back with even more power? No matter what attack I used, Nidoking would just throw it back. Suddenly I realised. That was it - the only way I could fight it was by not fighting it at all!  
  
'Slothie, I choose you!' I said. I threw my first pokÃ©ball into the arena. Slothie was still poisoned, but I had a way to solve both problems at once. 'Slothie, Rest!'  
  
Slothie turned to me and tilted its head, surprised that I would send it into battle only to tell it to go to sleep. I smiled, and then it smiled too, knowing that I'd thought well about this. It lay down and closed its eyes, going straight to sleep.  
  
'Ah,' said Zebulun. 'That was a smart move. Rest is a great technique if you know how to use it.'  
  
I just nodded. Now it was a matter of what happened first - Slothie waking up or Nidoking stopping Bide.  
  
After a few minutes, it was obvious what the answer was going to be. Nidoking shook itself out of its waiting game, and got ready to attack. Slothie remained lying on the ground, fast asleep. I tossed up switching it for another pokÃ©mon, but in the end it wasn't worth it. I couldn't risk the damage which Nidoking could do to whichever pokÃ©mon I switched for. After all, Slothie was the only one who could recover health points.  
  
'Nidoking, horn drill!' said Zebulun.  
  
Oh no, anything but Horn Drill! I couldn't win this battle without Slothie, I knew I couldn't! So this was it . . . if that attack connected, it would all be over for me. My chances of becoming a pokÃ©mon master would be no more. All I could do was stand there stupidly waiting to see whether Nidoking's attack was successful.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Eighteen, Chapter Four  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Zebulun the pokÃ©mon leader of mastery, Slothie the snorlax  
  
'Nidoking, horn drill!'  
  
The sharp horn on Nidoking's head began spinning around rapidly, and the ground pokÃ©mon charged at Slothie horn-first. I cringed and had to cover my eyes as it slammed its horn into Slothie. The attack had connected.  
  
Taking a deep breath, I forced myself to calm down. Maybe I could still win without Slothie, maybe one of my other pokÃ©mon could pull through. They were all very powerful, I knew that. If I had enough confidence, I could get through this.  
  
So I looked up, and to my surprise, Slothie was rubbing its eyes and standing up. Not fainted, and not even asleep, it was getting ready to go into battle once more. What was going on here!? Nidoking had used Horn Drill, one of those deadly one-hit KO moves! So how had Slothie managed to survive it?  
  
'I'm impressed,' said Zebulun. I looked over at him. 'Your snorlax is at a higher level than my nidoking.'  
  
I stared at him, eyes wide. My snorlax was at a higher level than one of the final gym leader's pokÃ©mon? Wow! I smiled, suddenly filled with the confidence to keep battling.  
  
'Slothie, headbutt!' I said.  
  
Slothie lowered its head and ran at Nidoking, knocking it down to the end of the stadium. It was getting weaker and weaker.  
  
'Nidoking, Earthquake!' said Zebulun. I was surprised that he hadn't told his pokÃ©mon to use Bide again, but then realised why. Its hit points were low now, and Slothie would probably knock it out before it got a chance to unleash the Bide attack. I smiled, and didn't feel fazed when Nidoking shattered the stadium with its Earthquake attack. Slothie took a fair amount of damage, but it could win this battle, I was sure of it.  
  
'Now, Body Slam!' I said. Slothie leapt into the air and came crashing down on Nidoking, dealing the final blow that managed to knock it out. I grinned. One down, five to go; and not one of my pokÃ©mon had fainted yet!  
  
'Nidoking, return!' called Zebulun, returning his pokÃ©mon to its pokÃ©ball. 'That's a great snorlax you've got there. It's powerful, but power isn't enough to win a pokÃ©mon battle. Let me show you another great snorlax.'  
  
He tossed his second pokÃ©ball into the arena and a snorlax, a little larger and darker than Slothie, materialised into the arena. So, it was his snorlax versus my snorlax. This would be interesting.  
  
'Snorlax, Harden!' said Zebulun. His pokÃ©mon concentrated its energy and built up its defense.  
  
'Slothie, get it before it ups its stats too much!' I said. 'Hyper Beam!'  
  
'Snor!' Slothie nodded. It gathered its power and launched a powerful beam at the opponent snorlax, causing an impressive amount of damage.  
  
'Snorlax,' said Zebulun. 'Let's use this opportunity while it has to recharge. Substitute!'  
  
Great, another move I hadn't encountered before! But I'd heard about this one. The pokÃ©mon created a "substitute" which took damage for it, but in the process lost some of its own health points. It seemed a little useless to me. Slothie would be able to handle it easily!  
  
'Now,' said Zebulun. 'Harden!'  
  
His snorlax built up its defense once more, giving the statistic bonus to its substitute. It seemed that Zebulun's snorlax was mainly a defensive pokÃ©mon - when was it going to attack?  
  
'Slothie, body slam!' I said.  
  
'Snorlax!' Slothie's signature attack hit the substitute with immense force, but not enough to cause it to break. The Harden techniques must have given it more added defense than I'd thought.  
  
'Now Snorlax, Selfdestruct!' said Zebulun, grinning.  
  
'What!?' I exclaimed. Why would he order his pokÃ©mon to use Selfdestruct in a battle like this!? Would he really give away his snorlax for one big hit? And his pokÃ©mon still had a lot of HP left, why would he use Selfdestruct so soon!? I became suddenly aware that Zebulun was a lot smarter than I'd thought he was. There had to be a trick to this, there just had to be!  
  
And there was. I watched in horror as the huge power of the Selfdestruct attack caused Slothie's health to drop almost to zero, while at the same time, only Snorlax's substitute actually exploded. The pokÃ©mon itself stayed happily ready to battle. All I could do was stare. Surely that technique had to be cheating! The whole point of Selfdestruct was to use it as a last resort when your pokÃ©mon was about to faint, because that way it didn't matter that it would faint from the attack. Selfdestruct always caused the pokÃ©mon using it to faint! So how could using Substitute let a pokÃ©mon get around that? It wasn't fair, it just wasn't fair!  
  
'Slothie, Rest!' I said desperately. It was all I could do. I had no idea how I would defeat Zebulun's snorlax, but I couldn't let Slothie faint.  
  
'All right Snorlax, create another Substitute!' said Zebulun. I swallowed as another substitute was created. Was he just going to repeat the process until he won? I really had no way to combat it . . . did I?  
  
Maybe I should just attack it now. After all, each time it used Substitute, it lost some of its own hit points . . . so eventually, it would run out. But if it used Selfdestruct each time, it could knock out a few of my pokÃ©mon before I even got near beating it!  
  
'Now Snorlax, Rest!' said Zebulun. I felt dizzy as I watched his pokÃ©mon recover its health. Now, it could go on using Substitute for even longer. Was this snorlax impossible to beat!? I had to do something, I had to do something!  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Eighteen, Chapter Five  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Zebulun the pokÃ©mon leader of mastery, Slothie the snorlax, Raus the venusaur, Catafree the butterfree  
  
'Slothie, return!' I called. 'I choose . . . Raus!'  
  
There was no point in leaving a sleeping pokÃ©mon out in battle, even if the opponent was sleeping as well. I had to do something to combat this snorlax while it was still asleep.  
  
'Raus, Leech Seed!' I said. Raus nodded and shot out a seed, which planted itself on the snorlax. I smiled. Now I'd be able to get to that snorlax without worrying about the substitute. But I still had to get rid of the substitute before I could do any real damage. 'Raus, Solar Beam!'  
  
While Snorlax was sleeping, I could afford to wait the time to power up Solar Beam. And in between, Leech Seed would suck some of its energy. A few minutes later, Raus fired the beam and broke the substitute in one hit. Now for that snorlax . . .  
  
Just as I was decided what attack to use on it, the snorlax opened its eyes, shook its head, and stood up. Great, so it was awake. Now Raus could be in trouble . . .  
  
'Raus, Razor Leaf!' I said. My venusaur shot out a gust of leaves, dealing a reasonable amount of damage to the snorlax.  
  
'Snorlax, Substitute!' said Zebulun. I narrowed my eyes. Now Raus would have to knock that substitute out before it could do any more damage to the snorlax! And I had to do it before it could use Rest again . . .  
  
'Raus, Razor Leaf!' I said. I couldn't afford to spend two turns using Solar Beam. But the attack wasn't enough to beat that Substitute . . .  
  
'Snorlax, Selfdestruct!' said Zebulun. I cringed as the snorlax performed its rule-defying technique once again, causing a huge amount of damage to Raus without even hurting itself at all. Of course, the substitute broke under the power of the attack, but now Raus was getting weak. If Snorlax used Rest any time soon, all of its efforts would have been for nothing.  
  
'Raus, Razor Leaf!' I said. The attack managed to do a good deal of damage to Snorlax, but not enough to make it faint. It was getting weak though, after having used Substitute without following it by Rest.  
  
'Snorlax, Rest!' said Zebulun. I looked at him curiously, surprised that he hadn't told his snorlax to use Substitute first. Its health must have been too low to be able to use the move. But now I had the advantage. I had the opportunity to attack it without worrying about the Substitute, and I had the added benefit of Snorlax being asleep! I smiled.  
  
'OK Raus, Solar Beam!' I said. Raus charged up its most powerful attack and, thanks to Snorlax's sleeping, managed to fire it without being attacked in between. The move caused a huge amount of damage to the snorlax, but not enough to knock it out.  
  
I tossed up what to do next. If I used Razor Leaf, it might not be enough to knock it out. But if I used Solar Beam, Snorlax might wake up and use Rest . . . but even then, wouldn't it need two turns - one to wake up and one to use its move? I nodded. I had to risk using Solar Beam.  
  
'Raus, Solar Beam!' I said. Raus began gathering its energy.  
  
'Venusaur!' it roared, unleashing the power of the strongest grass-type attack. The snorlax managed to hang in there, but only just - I could tell it was getting weak.  
  
And then, it woke up. I bit my lip. Raus was in trouble now. But Snorlax's HP was low, and hopefully it could be beaten in one more hit . . .  
  
'Raus, Tackle!' I said. Raus charged at the snorlax and knocked it to the ground. But the snorlax didn't faint! Oh no, I'd forgotten about the effects of Harden! And now Zebulun would tell it to use Rest, and . . . oh, how was I ever going to beat this snorlax?  
  
'Snorlax, Selfdestruct!'  
  
I stared at Zebulun. Had he really ordered his snorlax to use Selfdestruct, without Substitute!? He must have figured that it was worthwhile to just get rid of Raus once and for all.  
  
As his snorlax used the second most powerful move of all, all I could do was sigh, not sure whether to be upset about Raus fainting, or relieved about having Snorlax out of the way.  
  
Both pokÃ©mon collapsed to the ground, fainting under the power of Selfdestruct. Zebulun and I both recalled our pokÃ©mon, and I wiped my forehead, the tension really starting to get to me. Two of Zebulun's pokÃ©mon were down now, but so was one of mine, and one of my strongest at that. I couldn't help but feel that Raus's power had been wasted on that snorlax and its substitute, but I didn't have time to worry about that. I had to think about which pokÃ©mon to use next.  
  
Slothie had the least amount of weaknesses, so it made more sense to send it out . . . but it was still asleep, and I didn't want to risk sending it out until I knew I could spend a few turns waiting for it to wake up. And basically, the only way I could be sure of that was if the opponent used either a move like Nidoking's Bide or Snorlax's Rest. And I couldn't count on that happening. So what else could I do? I could send the opponent to sleep myself! Who else could I send out, but Catafree?  
  
Smiling, I threw my next pokÃ©ball into the arena. 'Catafree, I choose you!'  
  
Zebulun chuckled to himself. 'I'm sorry I have to do this to you, Janet. But you've made it this far, and I really don't have any choice. I don't really want to be so cruel to your butterfree, really.'  
  
I gulped. What pokÃ©mon was he going to send out? I'd obviously made the wrong choice in sending out Catafree . . .  
  
Zebulun took out his next pokÃ©ball, looked at it for a moment, then looked at me with a smile. 'Not many trainers make it past Nidoking and Snorlax, so you're very lucky to get this far. And now you're going to see why it's so important that the pokÃ©mon you battle here are kept secret. You're also going to see why this is the master badge you're battling for.' He took a deep breath. 'Here goes. Zapdos, I choose you!'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Eighteen, Chapter Six  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Zebulun the pokÃ©mon leader of mastery, Catafree the butterfree, Pikapi the raichu  
  
'Zapdos, I choose you!'  
  
I practically fainted. Zapdos? Zapdos!? ZAPDOS!?  
  
I suddenly wanted to give up completely and just go home, pretending the past three years had never happened, I had never become a pokÃ©mon trainer, had never won all fifteen gym badges and been beaten horribly by the zapdos at the master gym.  
  
No, I hadn't been beaten yet! I had to keep myself alert and confident, I just had to! If I was going to be such a wimp, I shouldn't have even made it this far. I'd earned my way here, and I was going to try my best. I couldn't give up just because my opponent was using one of the rarest and strongest pokÃ©mon in the world, who had the type advantage over my pokÃ©mon . . .  
  
I took a deep breath, and looked into the battlefield. The huge electric bird pokÃ©mon stood proudly in front of its master, staring at my little butterfree almost mockingly. I narrowed my eyes. I would win this, I would win this! My pokÃ©mon were capable of winning, I knew they were!  
  
'Catafree, Sleep Powder!' I said. If I could put zapdos to sleep, I could send out Evy and beat it with Aurora Beam . . .  
  
'Freee!' Catafree flew at Zapdos, sprinkling powder. However, to my immense disappointment, the attack missed. Great, now I was in for it.  
  
'Zapdos, Thunderwave!' said Zebulun. With a little zap of electricity, his pokÃ©mon paralysed Catafree. Once again, I wished more than anything that this battle had allowed items. I would have done so much better had I been able to use status-healing items! 'Now Zapdos, Double Team!'  
  
I heaved a sigh. It was going to be practically impossible to even hit this pokÃ©mon if Catafree was paralysed and Zapdos was raising its evasiveness!  
  
'Catafree, Sleep Powder!' I said. Catafree was gripped by paralysis, not even able to attempt to hit Zapdos.  
  
'Zapdos, Double Team!' said Zebulun.  
  
'Catafree, Sleep Powder!' I said desperately. This time, Catafree managed to get through its paralysis, but couldn't manage to find Zapdos with its raised evasiveness, and the attack missed. I sighed. Was I ever going to get Sleep Powder to work?  
  
'Zapdos, Drill Peck!' said Zebulun.  
  
'Zapdos!' his pokÃ©mon screeched and flew at Catafree with its sharp beak, finally using an offensive attack. The type advantage and Zapdos's sheer power meant that the attack caused considerable damage to my butterfree.  
  
'Hang in there, Catafree!' I said.  
  
'Free,' panted Catafree, already worn out from its paralysed status and loss of HP.  
  
'Catafree, try Psybeam!' I said hopefully. I had given up on Sleep Powder, and wanted just to get some damage done before Catafree fainted. But the effects of paralysis prevented Catafree from attacking. I heaved a sigh.  
  
'Zapdos, Double Team!' said Zebulun. It was going to be practically impossible to attack it the more times it used that move, but at least it wasn't doing any damage to Catafree, and I could still try . . .  
  
'Catafree, Psybeam!' I said. Catafree gathered is energy and fired a psychic beam at Zapdos, but after three Double Teams, the electric pokÃ©mon's evasiveness was too high to allow for Catafree to hit it.  
  
'Zapdos, Thunderbolt!' said Zebulun. His pokÃ©mon charged up its electricity and fired a blast of lightning at Catafree. My flying pokÃ©mon was electrocuted badly, and fell to the ground, fainting.  
  
I sighed heavily and felt tears in my eyes as I looked at my poor collapsed butterfree. I had been relying on Catafree's Sleep Powder to immobilise my opponents, and its Psybeam to deal big damage. But now, one of my most reliable pokÃ©mon had fainted without even getting one attack in. And now the match was even - two of my pokÃ©mon for two of Zebulun's pokÃ©mon. I was starting to get worried.  
  
'Catafree, return,' I said sadly. Which pokÃ©mon could I use to combat Zapdos? Slothie maybe, but I still had to wait for it to wake up, and even when it did, would it be able to get through Double Team? Chazz and Evy both had disadvantages against Zapdos, so really I didn't have much choice. When I thought about it, I was really lucky. Pikapi, being an electric type, would be quite strong against Zapdos's attacks. I smiled. 'Pikapi, I choose you!'  
  
'Zapdos, Thunderwave!' said Zebulun. I sighed. This paralysis could prove to be a real problem. Unless . . .  
  
'Pikapi, Thunderwave!' I smiled.  
  
'Chu chu,' Pikapi giggled, then shot its own Thunderwave at Zapdos, paralysing it! Now the two pokÃ©mon's statuses were even!  
  
'Don't worry Zapdos, you can still get the advantage here,' said Zebulun. 'Double Team!'  
  
As I thought through which of Pikapi's moves would be most effective, it suddenly occurred to me. With Pikapi, I didn't need to worry about Zapdos's high evasiveness at all! I had the perfect counter to it!  
  
'Pikapi,' I said with a smile. 'Swift!'  
  
'Rai,' nodded Pikapi. 'Raichu!'  
  
Pikapi shot out a burst of stars, hitting Zapdos despite all of its Double Teams, and causing a fair amount of damage, too!  
  
'That was a good idea,' said Zebulun. 'I guess it's down to plain old attacks now. Zapdos, Thunderbolt!'  
  
His pokÃ©mon blasted electricity at Pikapi, but thanks to my pokÃ©mon also being an electric type, it didn't do a great deal of damage.  
  
'Pikapi, Swift!'  
  
'Zapdos, Thunderbolt!'  
  
I smiled as Zebulun's zapdos was gripped by paralysis, preventing it from attacking. If luck stayed with me, I might just be able to beat this one!  
  
'Swift!' I watched happily as Pikapi once again managed to get through its own paralysis and attack Zapdos. The legendary bird was being weakened slowly.  
  
'Zapdos, Thunderbolt!' This time, Zapdos managed to hit Pikapi with its electricity.  
  
'Pikapi, Swift!' I said. The attack knocked a much higher amount of HP off Zapdos this time; a critical hit!  
  
'Zapdos, Thunderbolt!'  
  
Pikapi was getting weaker and weaker, but so was Zapdos. Maybe just one more hit . . .  
  
'Swift!'  
  
Paralysis took over my raichu, and it couldn't attack. I sighed. It had to happen eventually.  
  
'Zapdos, Thunderbolt!'  
  
But luck was still on my side, as Zebulun's zapdos was also unable to attack!  
  
'OK Pikapi,' I said. 'Put all your strength into it. Swift!'  
  
'Rai rai rai chuuuu!' Pikapi shouted, launching its attack at Zapdos. It connected, and the huge, proud legendary bird fell to the ground with a crash, defeated. I breathed a sigh of relief. I was halfway there now.  
  
'Zapdos return!' called Zebulun. 'Well done, but Zapdos is only the beginning. Not even that raichu will get through this one! Go, Articuno!'  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Eighteen, Chapter Seven  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Zebulun the pokÃ©mon leader of mastery, Pikapi the raichu, Evy the vaporeon  
  
'Go, Articuno!'  
  
Another legendary bird!? This was so unfair! I had to keep reminding myself that this was the final battle that a trainer ever had to fight - of course it was going to be hard! But how could one trainer own not one, but two legendary birds!? I couldn't let myself worry about it, I had to concentrate on winning. Despite its paralysis, Pikapi had an even greater advantage over this one. Articuno didn't have increased evasiveness, and didn't have the electric type to wipe out its weakness to electric attacks.  
  
'Articuno, Mist!' said Zebulun. His pokÃ©mon let out a strange misty aura, surrounding itself.  
  
'Pikapi, Thunder!' I said. It was risky using an attack with low accuracy like Thunder, but its power and type advantage would mean a good deal of damage if it hit.  
  
Unfortunately, it didn't. I sighed and prepared myself for Articuno's next move.  
  
'Articuno, Blizzard!' said Zebulun. His pokÃ©mon flapped its icy wings and blew out a storm of icy energy, hitting Pikapi and knocking it to the ground. I had to be somewhat grateful that Pikapi's paralysis prevented it from being frozen by Blizzard - that would be an even worse status change than paralysis!  
  
'Pikapi, Thunder!' I said, and suddenly lost my gratefulness to paralysis, as it took over Pikapi's body and stopped it from attacking. Was this going to be a repeat of Catafree's battle against Zapdos? I sure hoped not.  
  
'Articuno, Blizzard!' said Zebulun. Once again, his pokÃ©mon attacked with the most powerful ice-type move, which connected with Pikapi and caused a great deal of damage. Pikapi was getting weak quickly, and if it didn't get a move in soon it would suffer the same fate Catafree had.  
  
'Pikapi, Thunder!' I said hopefully. This time, the attack connected, and Articuno cried out in pain as the super-effective move drained almost all of its HP in one hit! I smiled. Perhaps this bird wouldn't be as hard as I had imagined.  
  
'Another Blizzard, Articuno!' said Zebulun. I watched in horror as his Articuno managed a critical hit, knocking Pikapi down and causing it to faint! It had been so unexpected, that the shock hurt me just as much as the loss.  
  
'Pikapi, return,' I sighed. Now how was I going to beat Articuno? Chazz could use its fire-type moves against it, but it would only fight back with its ice-type moves. On the other hand, Evy would be resistant to ice-type moves . . . 'Evy, I choose you!'  
  
I tossed another pokÃ©ball, and my vaporeon re-entered the battle. 'Evy, Bite!'  
  
Evy ran at the much larger pokÃ©mon and sunk its teeth into it. It dealt little damage, but even a small amount of damage brought Articuno near fainting after Pikapi's Thunder.  
  
'Articuno, Agility!' said Zebulun. His pokÃ©mon flew around in circles for a moment, building up Speed. 'Now, Blizzard!'  
  
His pokÃ©mon let out its super-powerful attack once more, but this time Evy managed to dodge it! I smiled.  
  
'Evy, Bite!' I said. Evy leapt at Articuno and bit it once more, causing reasonable damage but not enough to make it faint. 'Now, Quick Attack!'  
  
Evy charged at Articuno, its speedy attack overriding Articuno's increase in its speed statistic. The attack, although weak, was enough to send the legendary bird crashing down to the ground, defeated. I grinned. These birds weren't as tough as people made them out to be!  
  
'Articuno, return!' called Zebulun. 'You should be very proud Janet, you've come very far. But it's not over yet. And don't get too cocky about this next one, it's no pushover. Moltres, I choose you!'  
  
Oh no, not another legendary bird! Would this ever end? But at least this one was a fire-type. Evy would be able to beat this one easily! I smiled. No matter what he said about his moltres being "no pushover", Evy had a huge type advantage here.  
  
'Evy, Hydro Pump!' I said.  
  
'Vaporeon!' Evy leapt into the air and spun around, letting out a flood of water. The moltres took a lot of damage, the super-effective attack injuring it greatly.  
  
'Moltres, Agility!' said Zebulun. Just as his articuno had, Moltres flew around in circles to increase its speed. 'Now use Toxic!'  
  
Toxic again!? I'd thought that after defeating Nidoking, I'd seen the last of that horrible poison move! And I certainly hadn't expected to see a moltres using it! I sighed as the poison sunk into Evy's skin and began to take effect. I had underestimated Moltres, and Evy was weak after fighting Nidoking and Articuno . . . this poison might be enough to defeat it before it got a chance to beat Moltres! And then what would I do? If Slothie and Chazz couldn't beat Moltres either, I'd lose before I even got to Zebulun's last pokÃ©mon!  
  
I had to at least try to win this. 'Evy, Hydro Pump!'  
  
Evy gathered what remaining energy it had, and fired its most powerful attack at Moltres. I felt myself go cold as the attack missed completely, and wished more than anything that Hydro Pump had been a more accurate attack. The poison drained some more of Evy's energy, and I could tell that it was going to faint very soon. But recalling it now would be useless, because it would only faint against the next pokÃ©mon I sent it out against. All I could do was try and keep battling.  
  
'Moltres, Fire Spin!' said Zebulun. I gasped as Moltres let out a net of fire, wrapping it around Evy and trapping it inside.  
  
'Poreon!' Evy cried out as the flames enveloped it. It was now not only unable to attack, but it was losing energy rapidly from the power of the Fire Spin and the added damage from Toxic. I watched hopelessly as, only a minute later, Moltres stopped its Fire Spin and dropped Evy to the ground. My vaporeon had fainted.  
  
'Evy, return,' I sighed, feeling defeated.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Eighteen, Chapter Eight  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Zebulun the pokÃ©mon leader of mastery, Slothie the snorlax, Chazz the charizard  
  
What could I do? How could either of my remaining pokÃ©mon combat the combination of Toxic and Fire Spin? There had to be some way to get around it, there just had to be! And I had to think of it soon.  
  
'Slothie,' I said, taking its pokÃ©ball. I took out my other remaining pokÃ©ball. 'Chazz.'  
  
I couldn't send out Slothie because it was still asleep, but I couldn't send out Chazz because once poisoned, it wouldn't be able to recover its status. It was a case of risking Slothie's HP while waiting for it to wake up, or risking Chazz's status through Moltres's Toxic. I knew which one I needed more. Slothie could always recover its HP, whereas Chazz couldn't recover its status. Even though Moltres's Fire Spin would do less damage against Chazz than Slothie, the risks were greater for Chazz. I nodded.  
  
'Slothie, I choose you!' I threw the pokÃ©ball, and Slothie entered the battle for the third time. Still fast asleep, it seemed almost ridiculous to be sending it out into battle.  
  
'Moltres, Fire Blast!' said Zebulun. Moltres gathered its energy and let out a huge star-shaped ball of fire, which hit Slothie and caused a great deal of damage. I wondered why he hadn't told Moltres to use Toxic, before realising that poison would have no effect while Slothie was asleep.  
  
The impact of the incredibly powerful attack must have caused Slothie to wake up, as it shook its head and pulled itself to its feet, awake. It glowered at Moltres, angry to have lost so many hit points during its sleep.  
  
'Moltres, Toxic!' said Zebulun. His pokÃ©mon opened its mouth and spat out a sticky purple substance, which sunk into Slothie's skin and poisoned it, for the second time during that battle.  
  
I thought about which move Slothie should use. Body Slam or Headbutt might not do enough damage, whereas Hyper Beam would require recharging . . . but hold on! If Zebulun was going to use the same strategy as before, he would use Fire Spin next. That would mean that no matter what attack Slothie used now, it wouldn't be able to attack during its next turn. So what did it matter if it had to recharge?  
  
I smiled. 'Slothie, Hyper Beam!'  
  
Slothie fired a huge beam of energy at Moltres, causing a great deal of damage. But the legendary bird managed to just hang in there. I sighed. We'd beat it eventually.  
  
'Moltres, Fire Spin!' Zebulun commanded, sure enough. His pokÃ©mon wrapped its fiery breath around Slothie, preventing it from attacking and allowing Toxic to work faster. I had to just stand by and wait while Fire Spin damaged Slothie, and Toxic sucked more energy off it each turn.  
  
After three turns, Moltres's Fire Spin disappeared. Now was my chance.  
  
'Slothie, Hyper Be--'  
  
'Moltres, Fire Spin!' Zebulun cut in. I watched, horrified, as his moltres simply shot another Fire Spin out at Slothie, trapping it again. Moltres's speed was much higher than Slothie's, and so it was able to attack much quicker. With that kind of advantage over Slothie, my snorlax was never going to get a chance to attack. All that would happen would be that Fire Spin and Toxic would keep reducing its health until it fainted; each time Fire Spin stopped, Moltres would simply use it again before Slothie was able to attack. Staying in this battle was useless.  
  
'Slothie, return!' I called. Luckily, the beam of my pokÃ©ball managed to dodge the Fire Spin and get through to Slothie, zapping it back inside. I sighed with relief. It was all up to Chazz now. 'Chazz, I choose you!'  
  
'Moltres, Toxic!' said Zebulun. I cringed as his pokÃ©mon poisoned Chazz. If only I had sent Chazz out first - now I had sacrificed both Chazz's status and Slothie's HP!  
  
'Chazz, Slash!' I said.  
  
'Char,' said Chazz. It leapt into the air, flew at Moltres and scraped its claws down the flying pokÃ©mon's body. Moltres cried out in pain; it was a critical hit! The third legendary bird came crashing down to the ground, and I breathed a huge sigh of relief.  
  
'Well done Chazz!' I said as my charizard landed on the ground triumphantly.  
  
'Moltres, return,' said Zebulun, recalling his fifth pokÃ©mon. 'I'm very impressed, Janet. You're one of very few trainers who make it this far. Now, I suggest you prepare yourself. This isn't going to be easy.'  
  
I nodded. He was right. Both of my remaining pokÃ©mon were poisoned, one had lost quite a large amount of health, but Zebulun only had one pokÃ©mon remaining. It was going to be hard, incredibly hard, but I was about to face my final opponent. If I beat that pokÃ©mon, I would be a pokÃ©mon master. If I didn't, this entire battle would have been for nothing. The tension was building by the second, but I had to remain calm. Chazz and Slothie could do this, I knew they could. After all, Zebulun's final pokÃ©mon couldn't be any stronger than those legendary birds, right?  
  
'All right, here goes,' said Zebulun. 'Time to come out . . . Mewtwo.'  
  
I felt sick.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
Part Eighteen, Chapter Nine  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Zebulun the pokÃ©mon leader of mastery, Chazz the charizard, Slothie the snorlax  
  
I was speechless and utterly clueless when Zebulun threw his last pokÃ©ball into the arena. With a flash of bright light, a figure appeared. A tall grey creature, with hideous, unnatural-looking body parts, evil-looking eyes, and a long purple tail. It clenched its small, three-fingered hands into fists and let out a cry. 'Mewwww!'  
  
Mewtwo. How on earth did Zebulun have a mewtwo!? It was impossible! I didn't think that any trainer in the entire world had a mewtwo! Had I never met Allin, I probably would have thought it impossible for Zebulun to have those legendary birds, but to have a mewtwo . . . no way! There was just no way I could explain it. I had heard about Mewtwo, read about Mewtwo, but had never seen one in my entire life, and had never imagined that I would ever see one in my entire life. When I had met Vanessa, whose goal as a trainer was to catch a mewtwo, I had almost felt sorry for her, believing that she would never achieve her goal. Not once in my whole life had I ever thought I would face a mewtwo.  
  
'I suppose you see now why so few trainers make it to master level,' said Zebulun with a smile. 'You should be really proud that you've made it this far, really. If you back out now, you'll still have made it further than most trainers.'  
  
He was right. Maybe I should just back out now, and save Chazz and Slothie the pain of having to fight that pokÃ©mon. They couldn't beat it, there was no way. I took out my pokÃ©ball to recall Chazz. It was over.  
  
The orange lizard turned its long neck and faced me. It looked into my eyes, and I remembered seeing those eyes for the first time three years ago, when I had first found that little charmander back in my home kingdom. I'd managed to capture it, and it had been the first step on an unforgettable journey that had led me here. My dream had been to become a pokÃ©mon master. And no, no, there was no way I could give up on that dream now. No matter what it took, no matter how hard it was, we were going to win this battle.  
  
'Chazz,' I said, tears clouding my vision. 'I'm calling you back now, but I'm not giving up. I want Slothie to try first, so that it can recover its health. Is that OK?'  
  
Chazz nodded slowly, almost cautiously, as if to say "As long as you don't give up". I forced a smile, and held out my pokÃ©ball, returning Chazz.  
  
'Slothie,' I said, taking out another pokÃ©ball. 'I'm counting on you. Let's go.'  
  
Tossing my pokÃ©ball into the arena, I let out my snorlax. It was its fourth time going into this battle, and hopefully it would be able to do some real damage this time. I needed its power to defeat this mewtwo, it was the only way.  
  
'I admire your spirit,' said Zebulun, nodding. 'Mewtwo, let's begin. Mist.'  
  
'Mew,' Mewtwo shrouded itself in a cloud of mist, preventing any alterations to its statistics. I had to smile at that. Chazz and Slothie didn't have any statistic-altering moves anyway! That was one wasted move for Mewtwo!  
  
'Slothie, Rest!' I said. First things first - I had to get rid of that poison and recover Slothie's health as soon as possible. My snorlax lay down and went to sleep.  
  
'Mewtwo, Amnesia,' said Zebulun. I looked at Mewtwo curiously as it concentrated its energy. I remembered seeing Cammy use this move, but I still didn't understand it. 'Now Mewtwo, use Psychic!'  
  
'Mew,' Mewtwo closed its eyes and gathered its psychic energy. After a moment, it snapped its eyes open, threw its arms out and blasted Slothie with psychic energy. I could tell that it had dealt a huge amount of damage. And all that Slothie could do was keep sleeping. I sighed. Maybe I should have tried to attack rather than going straight with Rest.  
  
'Mewtwo, Psychic!' repeated Zebulun, and Mewtwo continued its powerful attack on Slothie. My snorlax shook itself and got to its feet, and I smiled. Zebulun ordered Mewtwo to use Psychic once more, and it caused a lot of damage to my snorlax, but Slothie wasn't going to go down that easily.  
  
'Snorlax lax!' it said angrily, growling at Mewtwo.  
  
I smiled. Maybe Slothie's anger could be used to our advantage. 'Slothie, Hyper Beam!'  
  
'Snorlaaaax!' Slothie angrily fired a beam of energy at Mewtwo, and the blast of energy caused the psychic pokÃ©mon to collapse. I stared. Was it over? Was it really over? Had that mewtwo only needed one Hyper Beam to be knocked out!?  
  
I thought too soon. Mewtwo leapt to its feet, ready to battle as ever.  
  
'Mewtwo, Psychic,' said Zebulun. With another blast of psychic power, Mewtwo sent Slothie flying to the end of the battlefield.  
  
'Snoooor!' it cried out, as it slammed down on the ground only a few metres ahead of me.  
  
'Slothie!' I exclaimed. 'Are you all right!?'  
  
'S . . . snorlax . . .' Slothie pulled itself to its feet. I sighed with relief. As long as Slothie was all right, I'd still have a chance.  
  
'Mewtwo, Recover!' said Zebulun, and I went cold. I watched as Mewtwo concentrated its energy and restored its health. With a move like that, Mewtwo was going to be practically impossible to beat. But Slothie had recharged its energy now, so another Hyper Beam would at least do some damage to it.  
  
'Slothie, Hyper Beam!' I said.  
  
'Snorlaaaaaax!' Slothie put all of its energy into its attack, causing a critical hit and a huge amount of damage to Mewtwo. But even so, it was not enough to defeat it. I was starting to get the feeling that nothing would be.  
  
'Mewtwo, Psychic!' said Zebulun. I gasped, realising how weak Slothie was, and that I hadn't used that opportunity to use Rest. And now, Mewtwo was using Psychic . . . oh no! With one final psychic blast, Mewtwo sent my snorlax, who I had relied on throughout this entire battle, crashing down to the ground. Slothie had fainted.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
  
  
Part Eighteen, Chapter Ten  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Zebulun the pokÃ©mon leader of mastery, Chazz the charizard  
  
I wanted to burst into tears as I recalled my pokÃ©mon. If I hadn't been so stupid, if I had only used Rest when I had the chance . . . had I really lost all my chances of becoming a pokÃ©mon master? Was it really all over for me?  
  
No. I still had my charizard. It was poisoned, but it hadn't lost a great deal of HP, and it was also one of my strongest pokÃ©mon.  
  
My hands were sweating and shaking as I took out that final pokÃ©ball and enlarged it. This was my final chance. All of my dreams of becoming a pokÃ©mon master were now resting on Chazz . . . just as they had been that day when I first caught it. I owed so much to Chazz, it had been such a loyal pokÃ©mon over the years. But I didn't have time to reminisce about it, all I had time to do was concentrate on this battle.  
  
'Chazz,' I whispered into the pokÃ©ball. 'I'm counting on you, buddy. Do your best, I know you can win.'  
  
With that, I dropped the pokÃ©ball and released Chazz. The charizard spread its wings and clenched its hands into fists, eager to battle despite the poison that was slowly sucking away its health. It turned its long neck to face me and smiled at me reassuringly, and I just smiled back.  
  
'Good luck Chazz,' I said. I took a deep breath. 'OK, here goes. Flamethrower!'  
  
Chazz let out a beam of flames, causing a reasonable amount of damage to Mewtwo. I suddenly realised that, after Slothie's Hyper Beam, Mewtwo's health points weren't even all that high anymore - it wouldn't take very long to defeat it after all!  
  
'Mewtwo, Recover!' said Zebulun, and my heart sunk. How had I forgotten about Recover? It became clear to me once more how impossible it was to defeat this mewtwo . . .  
  
I remembered Zebulun's words from earlier in the battle: power isn't enough to win a pokÃ©mon battle. The reason he had such a high place in the world of pokÃ©mon was probably because of his strategies. I had never thought I'd encounter a snorlax like his before, and his moltres had certainly caused a lot of trouble as well . . .  
  
Suddenly I thought of something.  
  
'Chazz, Flamethrower!' I said. Sure Mewtwo had prevented statistic- altering moves, but it hadn't prevented status-altering moves. If I could manage to burn it . . .  
  
Chazz shot another flamethrower at Mewtwo, singeing it for another dose of damage.  
  
'Mewtwo, Psychic!' said Zebulun. His mewtwo managed to cause a lot of damage to Chazz, but even with its poison, Chazz still had quite a lot of hit points remaining.  
  
'Chazz, Flamethrower!' I said. C'mon, a burn, all I need is a burn! But no, I didn't get one.  
  
'Mewtwo, Psychic!'  
  
I cringed as Chazz held its head in pain, unable to take much more of the psychic attacks. If Mewtwo kept this up for much longer, Chazz would be knocked out before I got a chance to really do any damage.  
  
'Chazz, Flamethrower!' I said. Chazz took a deep breath and blasted Mewtwo with fire, and - yes! The psychic pokÃ©mon was burnt! Chazz puffed, worn out, and I gulped. It could be over any second now.  
  
'Mewtwo, Psychic!' said Zebulun. His pokÃ©mon attacked, and nearly managed to knock Chazz out, but its burn caused it to lose energy after the attack.  
  
'Now Chazz,' I said. 'Fire Spin.'  
  
Zebulun blinked, as if surprised to see me using something other than an outright offensive move.  
  
Chazz smiled, and shot out a thin beam of fire, wrapping it around Mewtwo. Fire Spin wasn't generally my kind of move, but if the opponent was burned . . .  
  
The flames tightened around Mewtwo, holding it in place and preventing it from attacking. They began to slowly drain its energy, while at the same time, its burn caused its health to run out even faster.  
  
'Char . . . char . . .' Chazz puffed as it struggled to keep up the Fire Spin. I realised that it was still being affected by Toxic, and so even though it was draining Mewtwo's HP each turn, its poison was draining its own HP as well. I gulped. Maybe using Fire Spin wasn't a good idea after all - wasn't it really just a way of making Toxic get to Chazz faster?  
  
Just when I thought I had made the mistake of my lifetime, I heard Mewtwo cry out.  
  
'Meww . . .' it said, and fell back. Chazz kept its eyes and its flames on it for a moment, before letting go and collapsing to the ground. I looked over at the mewtwo, lying on the ground where Chazz had dropped it. My heart beating so fast I could hardly hear myself think, I stared at it and tried to make out whether it was awake or not.  
  
Minutes passed, as I continued to stare at the mewtwo. It hadn't moved one centimetre since it had fallen. It had definitely fainted. As I broke into a huge smile, I looked over at Chazz to congratulate it.  
  
And I realised that it had fainted as well.  
  
My expression dropped. Chazz had fainted. Chazz had fainted! My six pokÃ©mon had all been beaten. I'd lost. I'd really lost.  
  
~Janet~  
  
  
  
Part Eighteen, Chapter Eleven  
  
Characters: Janet Harris, Zebulun the pokÃ©mon leader of mastery, Sand-Cloud Pluff, Gelby Chu, Luke Smytheson  
  
I burst into tears and collapsed on the ground. It was over, it was over, it was over. I wasn't a pokÃ©mon master. It had all been for nothing. Twenty-nine pokÃ©mon, a pokÃ©dex of forty-two, fifteen badges, three years . . . no master badge. I'd made friends, made enemies, I'd laughed, I'd cried, and now it was all over. My dreams were nothing anymore.  
  
After a minute or two, I felt a hand on my shoulder.  
  
'Well, Janet,' said Zebulun's voice. 'What can I say? Congratulations. You're a pokÃ©mon master.'  
  
Was this his idea of some kind of joke!? I stood up and was ready to yell at him, when I saw him take something out of his pocket. It was a small round object . . . a badge. It was shaped like a pokÃ©ball, only with blue instead of red on the top, and a pink "M". It was a picture of a masterball. It was the master badge. The badge I hadn't earned.  
  
Zebulun took a deep breath and held the badge out to me. 'Here it is, Janet. Congratulations. You've done it.'  
  
I was speechless. Could he really be that cruel, holding the badge out to be as some kind of mockery!? I shook my head, disgusted at him.  
  
'Janet,' smiled Zebulun. He took my hand and placed the master badge on my palm. 'Take it. It's yours.'  
  
He closed my fingers over the badge, and smiled at me.  
  
'I . . . I . . .' I had no idea what to say. Was he really serious? I took a deep breath, and forced myself to speak. 'But . . . but Chazz . . . fainted . . .'  
  
Zebulun nodded. 'It did, but so did Mewtwo. At first I thought you'd lost as well, but then I checked the rules. They say you lose if your pokÃ©mon faints through Explosion or Selfdestruct, they don't mention anything about fainting from poison.'  
  
My jaw dropped, and I stared at him. 'You mean it!?'  
  
Zebulun nodded. 'Of course I do. We've never had a situation like this before, so we've never had to make a rule for it. But your charizard won fair and square, and so that master badge is yours.'  
  
I broke into a huge grin. I'd done it! I'd done it after all! I'd won the battle! And that meant . . . that meant . . . that I was a pokÃ©mon master! Laughing, I hugged Zebulun excitedly.  
  
'Thank you!' I said. 'Thank you so much!'  
  
'You don't need to thank me,' smiled Zebulun. 'You earned that badge just as much as any pokÃ©mon master.' I smiled, and wiped the tears from my eyes. 'Now, let's go see how your friend went in his battle.'  
  
My heart skipped a beat. Luke! I'd forgotten about him! Had he won as well? I wouldn't know how to tell him that I had won if he'd lost . . .  
  
Zebulun led me into the foyer of the PokÃ©mon League. Sand-Cloud and Gelby were waiting there, and upon seeing me, they rushed towards me.  
  
'Janet!' they both exclaimed at the same time. 'Congratulations!'  
  
I smiled and bent down on my knees, hugging both of them. 'Thank you so much, guys. I couldn't have made it without you, you're the best friends anyone could ever have!'  
  
'And what about me?'  
  
I looked up, and there was Luke, smiling down at me. The grin on his face made it obvious what the outcome of his battle had been; he didn't even need to tell me. I stood up, stepped around Sand-Cloud and Gelby, and gave him a hug.  
  
'Told you we could do it,' he smiled, resting his head on mine.  
  
'So you were right,' I smiled. 'Miracles happen.'  
  
'You two should be very proud,' said the girl from behind the counter, stepping out to meet us. 'As a reward for your achievements, we've got something to give to each of you.'  
  
Luke and I turned to look at her, surprised. Weren't master badges reward enough?  
  
The girl smiled and held out her hand. Inside were two pokÃ©balls, reduced to their smaller sizes. But they weren't ordinary pokÃ©balls. They were blue on the top instead of red, and had a pink "M" written on them. I gaped at them.  
  
'Every pokÃ©mon master is presented with one masterball,' said the girl. 'As I'm sure you both know, a masterball is the ultimate kind of pokÃ©ball which captures any pokÃ©mon automatically. Use them wisely.'  
  
'We will,' said Luke, as we took a masterball each.  
  
'Don't ever think that your pokÃ©mon journeys end with becoming pokÃ©mon masters,' said the girl with a smile. 'There's still so much to do out there in the world of pokÃ©mon. More and more pokÃ©mon are being discovered every day, and there are plenty of leagues to compete in as pokÃ©mon masters. The great thing about being pokÃ©mon trainers is knowing that the journey never ends.'  
  
~Janet~  
  
END OF PART EIGHTEEN 


	21. Epilogue

Epilogue  
  
Sand-Cloud, Gelby, Luke and I headed out of the PokÃ©mon League building. At long last, we were pokÃ©mon masters. We really had no idea where we were heading next, but it didn't matter. Walking down that mountain, all I could think about was the badge I was still holding in my hand. The sixteenth badge, the master badge, was finally mine. It seemed like a dream, to imagine that I was really a pokÃ©mon master.  
  
'No . . . no . . . this can't be happening!'  
  
The voice startled me, knocking my out of my thoughts, and I looked up. Coming towards us, heading up the steep mountain looking completely worn out, was a familiar-looking figure. I couldn't help but break into a smile. In the excitement of the PokÃ©mon League, I hadn't even thought about where he'd be on his pokÃ©mon journey!  
  
'Well, if it isn't our good friend Mitch,' I smiled.  
  
'What do you think you're doing here?' Mitch demanded.  
  
'Oh, we're on our way home,' I smiled. 'It was a pretty easy battle, really . . . but I guess you'll find it a challenge.'  
  
Mitch narrowed his eyes. 'You're such a lier, Janet.'  
  
'I'm not lying,' I said. 'You're looking at pokÃ©mon masters.'  
  
I held out my master badge with a smile, and Mitch took a deep breath.  
  
'Only 'cause you cheated,' he said.  
  
'We don't cheat, Mitch,' I said. 'We're not like you. Just face it, we beat you here.'  
  
'Oh yeah, so what!?' said Mitch angrily. 'I bet you can't beat me in a battle! Show me what you've got!'  
  
He took out a pokÃ©ball.  
  
'Don't be ridiculous,' I said. 'I'm not going to waste my time with a mere pokÃ©mon trainer like you. I've got better things to do with my time, like compete in the masters-only leagues.'  
  
Mitch narrowed his eyes. I grinned. I knew I was being cocky, but I just didn't care anymore. It was so good to get back at Mitch after all this time!  
  
'See you later Mitch,' I smiled. 'Good luck, you'll need it!'  
  
I laughed, and began running down the mountainside, more eager than ever to get home and tell everyone what had happened. I was a pokÃ©mon master.  
  
'Janet, wait up!' called Luke, as he, Sand-Cloud and Gelby ran after me.  
  
'C'mon you three!' I laughed, turning back to them. 'We've got a long way to go. Our pokÃ©mon journey's not over yet - it's just started!'  
  
~Janet~  
  
THE END 


End file.
